Formula One is the pinnacle of Motor Sport, attracting a global audience in excess of 500 million people and generating revenue of an alleged $3.9 billion. With twenty races staged in 19 different countries, F1 truly is a world championship event.
In the beginning
The first post war races staged in the early 1950s were predominantly European events dominated by Italian manufacturers Alfa Romeo and Ferrari. Alfa dominated the 1950 season before Ferrari hit back in 1951 with a new 4.5 litre which allowed them to seriously challenge their Italian rival’s dominance. Only the legendary skills of Juan Manuel Fangio kept the Ferrari challenge at bay. However, Alfa’s funding was tight and they were forced to withdraw from the championship prior to 1953 which opened the door for Ferrari and Alberto Ascari to lead the way for the first time.
In 1954 Mercedes Benz entered the fray with a ‘stream-lined’ design way ahead of its Italian rivals in terms of aerodynamics. The German giants lead driver Fangio and his team-mate Stirling Moss crushed the field, with Fangio adding a further two championships to his collection in 1954 and 1955. However, motor sport was inherently dangerous in this era and at the 1955 Le Mans 24 hour race a Mercedes sports car crashed into the grandstands killing 80 spectators. The German manufacturer immediately withdrew from motor sport prior to the start of 1956, handing Ferrari and the newly transferred Fangio another championship victory.
Money and Conflict
Ferrari hit back in 1975, with the Italian team beginning a long lasting rivalry with McLaren which endures to this day. However, the big moves during this period were happening behind the scenes with new Brabham owner Bernie Ecclestone volunteering to represent the teams in negotiations with circuit owners over appearance fees. In the past, each team had negotiated their appearance fee individually with Ferrari having generally been granted a higher payment thanks to their reputation and prestige which infuriated the British teams who were struggling to compete financially. Ecclestone proposed that by negotiating as a single unit the British teams would receive a much larger fee thanks to the damage that a mass boycott would cause to any race meeting. Ecclestone was granted a percentage of the fee in exchange for this and dutifully increased the team’s finances massively during the 1978 season.
Ecclestone also recognised the potential revenues which was available from television which had been largely unexploited by the sport. He negotiated with the sports governing body to have control over the sports television broadcasting and invested millions in the establishment of broadcasting equipment at each circuit which would allow every race to be broadcast live across the world. Viewing audiences were enticed by fascinating duels between prominent Ayrton Senna, Alain Prost and Nigel Mansell (in the days before he was the star of Moneysupermarket car insurance commercials). This opened a new stream of revenue to the teams, and also increased sponsorship investment on the back of the larger television viewing audience. Teams gradually started to spend more on exotic technology and equipment culminating in the 1993 Williams car which came equipped with active suspension, traction control and anti-lock braking systems. However, critics complained that the skills of the driver were no longer as important and called for changes to be made.
The safety crusade
Driver safety had improved immeasurably during Ecclestone’s rein thanks to crusades by Jackie Stewart and Formula One Medical Doctor Professor Sid Watkins. By 1993, drivers involved in accidents stood a good chance of escaping unscathed. This led to a perception that it was no longer possible to be killed during a Formula One race with the last death at a race meeting have occurred in 1982. However, events at the San Marino Grand Prix of 1994 changed all of this. The weekend started badly during qualifying when rookie driver Roland Ratzenberger was killed following a front wing failure. The Drivers, led by Ayrton Senna, met on Sunday morning and agreed that the FIA had to act to improve driver protection. On lap seven of the race, Senna’s Williams went straight on at the Tamburello corner and the great Brazilian three times World Champion later died as a result of massive head injuries.
The future
The Sports future ultimately revolves around hybrid technologies which are relevant to road car developments. It is likely that this will come to symbolise the tenure of new FIA President Jean Todt, just as much as safety improvements were the main highlight of the Mosley era. This led to the announcement of a new set of technical regulations for the 2013 season, with substantially smaller turbo charged engines and increased capacity KERS devices which it is believed will cumulate in a 50% fuel saving for each individual car. Formula One never stops.