Change to the 2013 calendar...

[p-matt]

So when does the 2013 calendar need to be finalised by? The venue of the German GP is still TBC.

[bjohnsonsmith]

Back to 19 races?

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/104806

[bjohnsonsmith]

Originally Posted by TrueBlueFlyer

what's wrong with the Far East venues?

Except for Japan, there's no grass roots motor sport and therefore no natural fan base. They bus the crowd into the S. Korean GP and there are empty stands at the Chinese GP.

[NaBUru38]

Originally Posted by bjohnsonsmith

Except for Japan, there's no grass roots motor sport and therefore no natural fan base. They bus the crowd into the S. Korean GP and there are empty stands at the Chinese GP.

Exactly. They tried to build a motorsport fanbase through major races, rather than building a local motorsport scene and later attract major races.

[bjohnsonsmith]

Originally Posted by NaBUru38

Exactly. They tried to build a motorsport fanbase through major races, rather than building a local motorsport scene and later attract major races.

Motor sport is not in their culture; these far eastern GPs are just a cash cow for Bernie, nothing to do with motor sport.

[JeremySmith]

Originally Posted by bjohnsonsmith

Motor sport is not in their culture; these far eastern GPs are just a cash cow for Bernie, nothing to do with motor sport.

That is one way of looking at it...

The other is, they want a F1 race in their country "okay we can do that"

You provide a facility and we will arrive and put on a show, now it's your job to promote it and sell tickets...

[Bononi]

There's a "eastern money" trend going on in the world recently. You can see it in all things and I guess F1 wouldn't be different since it's an international brand. It's a case of what's going on in the world today rather than a culture thing, specially when many eastern countries "like" western things just for feeling they're part of the world.

[bjohnsonsmith]

Originally Posted by JeremySmith

That is one way of looking at it...

The other is, they want a F1 race in their country "okay we can do that"

You provide a facility and we will arrive and put on a show, now it's your job to promote it and sell tickets...

The problem though is they can't sell tickets, or enough of them, as was the case with Turkey and is the case with China or they bus the crowd in like they do in S. Korea. There's never been any grass roots motor sport in these countries, so it doesn't matter how much the event is promoted, people won't go because they're not interested. Not everyone likes motor sport.

[wnut]

Originally Posted by bjohnsonsmith

The problem though is they can't sell tickets, or enough of them, as was the case with Turkey and is the case with China or they bus the crowd in like they do in S. Korea. There's never been any grass roots motor sport in these countries, so it doesn't matter how much the event is promoted, people won't go because they're not interested. Not everyone likes motor sport.

TBF the whole of Asian grass roots motorsport is a total participation sport that unfolds daily on their roads.
I think the real problem is F1 is so prosaic and expensive in comparison, that there is simply no interest.

[Mr V]

Originally Posted by bjohnsonsmith

Back to 19 races?

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/104806

Can't help but think that if Red Bull waved a shed load of dosh in Bernie's face there would be 20 races.

[bjohnsonsmith]

Originally Posted by wnut

TBF the whole of Asian grass roots motorsport is a total participation sport that unfolds daily on their roads.
I think the real problem is F1 is so prosaic and expensive in comparison, that there is simply no interest.

If that's the case why hasn't motor sport developed beyond a total participation sport that unfolds daily on their roads? Why then try and promote F1 in these places; it's bound to fail as it has in Turkey and as it is in China and as it will in S. Korea.

If Bernie wants more races on his calendar he better look to those places that have a natural fan base.

[Steelepunk]

Has the FIA replied to Austin requesting a change of date because of the Longhorns match?

The 3 alternatives I can think of are
Moving it to a week after Montreal,
Switch it with Interlagos or
Bump Austin & Brazil by a week to create a 3 week break after Abu Dhabi.

I've never been to Austin but I would imagine hosting a huge football game the same weekend as a GP would be a major hassle in relation to hotels especially.

[JeremySmith]

Originally Posted by Steelepunk

Has the FIA replied to Austin requesting a change of date because of the Longhorns match?

The 3 alternatives I can think of are
Moving it to a week after Montreal,
Switch it with Interlagos or
Bump Austin & Brazil by a week to create a 3 week break after Abu Dhabi.

I've never been to Austin but I would imagine hosting a huge football game the same weekend as a GP would be a major hassle in relation to hotels especially.

It will be fine...

[TheMightyM]

Originally Posted by Steelepunk

Has the FIA replied to Austin requesting a change of date because of the Longhorns match?

The 3 alternatives I can think of are
Moving it to a week after Montreal,
Switch it with Interlagos or
Bump Austin & Brazil by a week to create a 3 week break after Abu Dhabi.

I've never been to Austin but I would imagine hosting a huge football game the same weekend as a GP would be a major hassle in relation to hotels especially.

I haven't been to Austin either, but in my experience in other college towns and with the NFL here in Charlotte, the problem isn't necessarily so much hotels as most people going to the game are either day trippers or college students. Rather it's just a complete pain to get around near the football stadium before and after the game. Finding someplace to eat after the game can also be a challenge. Holding a festival on the Saturday night for GP fans may be logistically difficult. Police and public transportation resources may be stretched thin. Things like that.

[Paulaweybridge]

There ya go.

F.O.S is July 11th/14th 2013 now.

http://www.goodwood.co.uk/festival-o...d/welcome.aspx

Originally Posted by brands

I assume Charlie will move the FoS date back a week so the F1 teams can attend.
It's going to ruin my FoS and HSCC Superprix long weekend though

[mythoughtsareracing]

Originally Posted by Steelepunk

Has the FIA replied to Austin requesting a change of date because of the Longhorns match?

The 3 alternatives I can think of are
Moving it to a week after Montreal,
Switch it with Interlagos or
Bump Austin & Brazil by a week to create a 3 week break after Abu Dhabi.

I've never been to Austin but I would imagine hosting a huge football game the same weekend as a GP would be a major hassle in relation to hotels especially.

I don't believe the FIA has responded.

However, this football game isn't just ANY college football game. This is University of Texas vs Oklahoma University, a huge rivalry game. The game typically draws 100,000.
And, of course, when the game is played in Austin there is a big street party and music festival associated with it.

Austin has a music festival associated with any local event of any size or significance.
Election Day? Let's have a music festival!
The Mayor lost ten pounds on Slim-Fast? Let's have a music festival!
Someone bought a Smart Four-Two? Let's have a music festival!
Thursday? Let's have a music festival!

Originally Posted by TheMightyM

I haven't been to Austin either, but in my experience in other college towns and with the NFL here in Charlotte, the problem isn't necessarily so much hotels as most people going to the game are either day trippers or college students. Rather it's just a complete pain to get around near the football stadium before and after the game. Finding someplace to eat after the game can also be a challenge. Holding a festival on the Saturday night for GP fans may be logistically difficult. Police and public transportation resources may be stretched thin. Things like that.

Hotels are part of the problem.
Figure you're going to have two events expected to draw 100,000+ attendees on the same weekend. It's not like Vegas where the whole city is hotel rooms and they can host CES and Adult Video Awards the same weekend.
Hotels were rarer than a hen's tooth the weekend of the USGP a month ago. There weren't enough for the inaugural F1 race, and there is no way they can add enough to accommodate both the USGP and Red River Shootout in the same weekend.

The two venues are far enough apart that people won't get cross-threaded and end up going toward the wrong venue, but the already congested traffic from a growing city will be worsened along every major artery in the city.
I-35 runs right by the UT campus, and is the primary route for people going to the football game. It gets backed up on a regular UT game day, and on a big game like the RRS, it's crazy.
SR-130 (the new 80mph toll road) runs along the other side of the airport and is the access route to CotA, and will be filled with shuttle buses all weekend long.

If the USGP date stands, I recommend that Austinites stay home all weekend.

[p-matt]

The GP2 calendar has been revealed with all of the F1 European rounds. I wonder if that definitely means that we will not get a 20th race.

They are also saying that the German GP will be at the Nurburgring.

[Spritle]

I think Austin just needs to stick with a date and get on with it going forward. I personally think it's a bit arrogant to expect the rest of the F1 venues to accommodate schedule change requests for every competing event that comes along.

Let the bloody football schedule change!

[NaBUru38]

DTM and FIA F3 moved the Norisring one week later. Now it clashes with the F3 Masters at Zandvoort.

[chillibowl]

Originally Posted by Spritle

Let the bloody football schedule change!

F1 related media exposure for the sponsors will be seriously curtailed in US markets that weekend and isnt that whats really important here?

seriously though, at first i was of the opinion they should change the date but thinking about getting exposure in the US, there may be opportunities to organizing some cross promotional events. maybe get an F1 car done up with a U of Texas livery, do some burnouts and get yourself on national TV.

[Spritle]

Originally Posted by chillibowl

F1 related media exposure for the sponsors will be seriously curtailed in US markets that weekend and isnt that whats really important here?

Ummmm...

...Ignoring SPEEDTV; other than the expected local coverage and a New York Times article which was probably more about the first US F1 Grand Prix in a long time versus Grand Prix racing in general; the US media barely acknowledged the race. I have yet to see any US TV viewership figures.

There will always be competing events in any market, especially in the US in the fall with football frenzy but to constantly change dates because of attendance anxiety is silly. Austin was originally in June but that was "too hot" so they were accommodated in November. In 2013 a college football game is the problem. What happens in 2014, a Boy Scout Jamboree creates a conflict and Thanksgiving eliminates an opportunity for a date change?

Look at the Indy 500, while it is nowhere near as popular there is hardly anyone in the US who doesn't know that the race takes place over the Memorial Day weekend whether they watch it or not. It couldn't hurt the Austin to look for similar regularity.

[chillibowl]

well that was more of a joke really hence the smiley

but anyways its is a fair point as there is something to be said for picking a day and making that day synonymous with your event. sadly i think F1 got beaten to the punch in making that day their own...the Nascar finale on that day is just one of its problems. throw football in there and its always going to be an uphill battle to make that weekend 'their own'.

for me its as if there is some weird resistance in truly attempting to grow F1 in the US. personally i would rather grant Austin whatever day they wanted or whichever one they found to work best (and it might take a few years to find that weekend) because the alternative is no race in the US followed up with more night races on street courses in Asia.

[Steelepunk]

Originally Posted by chillibowl

personally i would rather grant Austin whatever day they wanted or whichever one they found to work best (and it might take a few years to find that weekend) because the alternative is no race in the US followed up with more night races on street courses in Asia.

I tend to agree with this train of thought. F1 in the US needs all the help it can get, give them the weekend that they want (within reason) for the good of growth in that country.
Austin is a great circuit and it would be terrible if it ended up being unsuccessful and ultimately losing out to the likes of Bangkok, Russia, New Jersey & all these other places vying for a GP.

[JeremySmith]

That is not going to happen, our first race was a huge success, it appeared that way to me anyway, and many others I spoke with..

We are simply in for the long term with F1, plus Austin has many other race meetings on the agenda, and last and not least, we got here first..

[Spritle]

To be honest, the NASCAR finale is a non-issue IMHO. F1 (Austin) took it head on this year knowing full well what was at stake and did well. Besides, NASCAR folks aren't t F1 folks and the sooner everybody realizes that the better. There are plenty of fans to go around in the US!

Remember what I said once before, in the US even "pro" wrestling and (gasp) soccer has a following....

Jeremy is right, we (F1) did get here first. Stick with a date and go forward and folks will make their choices on what they support.