Quote:
Originally Posted by midgetman
F1 will still be superior in the ratings. The drivers are only stars because TV made them. Swap the names and within months it would be "Fernando? Didn't he used to race in F1? What's he doing these days?"
Back in the 60s and 70s when F1 was hardly televised it barely raised an eyebrow beyond enthusiasts. F1 is headed that way again and will join the WRC as an interesting back water having once gripped a nation.
The big sponsors aren't interested in the die hard F1 fan, there's a finite number of those. They want mass market eyeballs, the casual viewer, the mildly interested viewer. <1million paying viewers in the country with probably the biggest interest in F1 doesn't justify an F1 team's rate card! If Sky UK has such poor viewing figures goodness knows how few people are watching via Sky Malaysia or Sky Vietnam or even Sky USA where F1 is definitely low down in the motor sport pecking order.
I used to record all GPs religiously, this year I struggle to remember which ones I've seen and there were only one or two. My business and my life is motor racing, but I'm afraid F1 is no longer a "must see". No matter whether it were FTA, cheap PPV or hugely expensive subscription, the whole F1 scene isn't good enough to demand my interest.
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This is my exact problem.
I would consider myself a hardcore F1 enthusiast/addict, helped a lot by the mutual support group at tentenths, yet F1 is currently struggling to maintain my interest, I am not sure that I can be bothered to watch it on FTA, let alone fork out hundreds of pounds to dig it out from behind a paywall.
If I were offered a really good racing product (1980s F1, F5000, Champ Car) on FTA, I believe I could forget 50 years of F1 fandom very quickly indeed.
World series cricket anyone?