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Indeed it's not very good is it?
But crucially all we are talking about here is GP2 and GP3 which have about as much relevance to general motorsport as tractor pulling.
It goes back to my point that the local championships should be permitted to support the Grand Prix. For me things have gone downhill since they tried to make it a show with the same series at each event. Back in the day we had FFord, F3, F2 (F3000), sports cars etc. All running separate events and meetings. F2/F3000 was an international championship and like Formula 1 had its own headline events, which again were supported by the various local championships.
As such that kind of structure not only encouraged spectators, provided showcases for the local championships and also provided many and various routes for drivers to progress. The top down approach using Formula 1 as the be all and end all of motorsport has removed all of these opportunities hence we get GP3 and GP2 none of which have local equivalents.
So, going back to Silverstone's problem and Chunder's point. Yes the fans can and have walked, sadly they've been replaced with Bella's casual spectator who I suspect goes for the atmosphere rather than the racing.
That being the case it's no wonder that not only are the TV audiences reducing, the circuits are unable to sustain the increasing costs. Formula 1 is increasingly tedious. Whilst all the false devices for overtaking are designed to make it exciting, it fails in that aspiration.
As an example in 1988 McLaren had the Honda and Williams had the Judd V8. It was a no brainer that either Senna or Prost would win the British GP. Then it rained. I recall sitting in the Copse No.1 stand and being grit blasted by horizontal rain. During the race it began to dry, Senna was leading but gaining on him very quickly was a Williams driven by Mansell. We watched him weaving into the damp patches passing the pits to keep his tyres cool.
He didn't win, there was no overtaking but just watching the man and machine trying was excitement in itself. The race was followed by a BTCC race in which dear old Mike Smith stacked his BMW M3 in the barriers in front of our stand. Incidentally the stand remained full from the start of the GP to the end of the Touring Car race.
I'm not suggesting we should go back to the bad old days of variety and entertainment but even if I am looking through rose tints, it is plain to me that without the opportunity to run its own race meetings, no circuit will survive.
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