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Is the current "close racing" really what we want?
I would suggest that it is part of the problem rathewr than part of the solution.
Watching Darwin on the box at weekend and there was certainly no shortage of close racing. THe parity police have got it absolutely right with a minimal DIFFERENCE IN PERFORMANCE over the entire field. There were small differences in driver ability, tyre strategy and car set up, but as one of those millennials we are talking about said to me before going back to his screen:
"Looks like Bundall Rd speeded up a bit, but all the cars are the same, just different paint jobs and stickers".
Somehow we need to get away from this constant SAMENESS both in cars and levels of performance.
Over the years the high points of spectating or TV watching have been watching DIFFERENT cars compete with each other. FJ Holden v Mk2 Jag, Cortina v Studebaker Lark Mustang v Mini LJ XU1 v GT Falcon and so on. Motor racing is not attracting a new audience because there is no variety, either within the top classes or across the program of races.
THe challenge is not just to find a new breed of tin top but to find a whole new range of race cars.
Pecky, given variety, spectacle and something that the fan can call new the existing ones will have new enthusiasm and a whole range of new ones will emerge to replace us old farts as we getpast it.
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