When Dario Franchitti first went to the Indianapolis 500, he tried to approach it like any other motor race. But as he admits during his lunch interview with Simon Taylor in the May issue of Motor Sport, he couldn’t help being affected by ‘The Brickyard’. The size and scale of the place, the buzz surrounding the town through the month of May, how much it mattered to everyone around him: he knew this was special, and for a driver with a rare passion for racing history and an obsession with Jim Clark, Dario couldn’t avoid the magical draw of America’s greatest race.

That it remains in 2011, despite the scars of the split that almost destroyed the sport of Indycars. The ‘500’ was the glue that kept single-seater oval racing intact in an era dominated by NASCAR. The race – the event – was quite simply too big to go down.

This May Indianapolis will celebrate the 100th anniversary of a yearly occasion that fired a nondescript Midwestern city into the consciousness of any true sports fan anywhere in the world. It is a landmark that we at Motor Sport felt compelled to celebrate – which is why we have dedicated a sizeable chunk of the May issue to the wonderful history of the race.

So why should a British magazine get so excited about an event in which 33 drivers only turn left around a four-corner rectangle for 500 miles? Read Robin Miller’s article on his own personal relationship with the Speedway to find out. The determination, strength and humour of the racing spirit is the oxygen that gives life to our magazine, and Robin’s piece is high on it! At the Speedway, it’s so strong you can taste it, as John Cooper, Colin Chapman, Jimmy Clark, Graham Hill, Jackie Stewart, Nigel Mansell, Dan Wheldon, Franchitti and many others from ‘over here’ found out when they travelled ‘over there’.

Britain’s relationship with the 500 has ebbed and flowed over the century, but it’s always existed. Take the Speedway’s great historian Donald Davidson: you wouldn’t know it speaking to him now, but he’s a Brit. But on his first visit to the Speedway in 1964, he knew he’d found his true home. As the locals found out, no one has more understanding and knowledge of the race, and he was the obvious choice to put a 100 years of racing history into context.

Now, that sounds like the subject of a doorstop-sized book, so how could we distil it into a magazine article? Donald thought long and hard. What he came up with – the greatest, most dramatic finishes in the 500’s history – does so beautifully. Even if you’re an Indy doubter, I’d urge you to read it.

The British theme continues via Ian Wagstaff, who has written a recent book on the subject. We’ve steered clear of the rear-engined revolution of the 1960s because so much has already been said, as any regular reader of Motor Sport will know. No, too obvious for us! So Ian tells the story of the second British invasion of Indianapolis that in its own way changed the shape of the race as much as the pioneering years of the mid-60s.

Add the interview with Dario and another with the Unsers – the first family of the 500 – and I hope you’ll find it does justice to 100 years of incredible speed and action.

Now, I know US oval racing is not everyone’s shot of bourbon. So as usual there is plenty more in the May issue to keep you reading for the month. Nigel Roebuck is typically forthright in his assessment of Formula 1’s recent entanglement in real-world politics, and as usual he puts the Bahrain debacle in context beautifully by reflecting on previous occasions when the sport has found itself on dodgy ethical ground. Then there’s his description of the Cuban Grand Prix – a race at which Juan Manuel Fangio found himself being kidnapped. Writing about it in 2011, it’s hard to imagine it actually took place. Fernando, count yourself lucky…

Nigel also sits down with Stirling Moss to revisit what many consider his greatest race, the 1961 Monaco Grand Prix – yes, another anniversary, this time just a mere half-century ago. We also print an edited version (God, he’d go mad at us for cutting his copy!) of Denis Jenkinson’s original race report for Motor Sport and reproduce some of his beautifully neat and detailed notes from the weekend when Moss beat the ‘Sharknose’ Ferraris.

Alan Henry talks to Ron Dennis about his formative years in team management, in Formula 2 during the early 1970s; Patrick Head recalls the breakthrough years of the Williams FW07; and Tiff Needell opens his personal scrapbooks to show us his collection of racing photos that he snapped from the spectator banks of the 1960s – when his love of the sport took hold.

And if that’s not enough, don’t miss our free supplement* on the Motor Sport Hall of Fame, in association with TAG Heuer, which took place in London during February. It seems like ages ago already. Before we know it, we’ll be heading back to the Roundhouse in 2012 for the next one…

*Available in the UK only

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

Motor Sport Magazine paid tribute to four inspirational racing icons last night at the Roundhouse, London, by inducting them into the prestigious annual Motor Sport Hall of Fame, held in association with TAG Heuer.

Sir Jack Brabham OBE, Sir Frank Williams CBE, Jody Scheckter and Dario Franchitti were all honoured with awards on stage in front of a star-studded audience. Collecting the award on behalf of Sir Jack was his son David Brabham, with the legendary Sir Stirling Moss OBE making the presentation.

Having won three Formula 1 titles in 1959-60 and 1966, Jack Brabham is the oldest surviving World Champion. In 1966 became the only man to ever win the F1 drivers’ title in one of his own cars, having founded the highly successful Brabham racing team.

Frank Williams received his award from legendary F1 commentator Murray Walker, who spoke fondly about the endless passion and commitment to Grand Prix racing that the Wiliams team founder has shown since the late ’60s.

The third inductee of the evening was Ferrari’s 1979 World Champion Jody Scheckter. TAG Heuer CEO Jean-Christophe Babin and five-time Grand Prix winner John Watson bestowed the honour on the South African racer. Scheckter had a sensational career, driving for McLaren, Tyrrell, Wolf and Ferrari. He was the last driver to win a world title for Ferrari until Michael Schumacher did so 21 years later.

Completing the line-up of 2011 Motor Sport Hall of Fame inductees was three-time IndyCar Series champion Dario Franchitti. Highly respected for his achievements in America, the Scot is also a two-time Indianapolis 500 winner and undoubtedly Britain’s most successful motor racing export to the US.

The great and good of F1 gathered for the awards, with personalities including Christian Horner, Eddie Jordan, John Watson and Karun Chandhok in attendance on the night. Celebrity faces were also seen gracing the red carpet outside the iconic Roundhouse and mixing with the motor sport fraternity. James Martin, Chris Rea, Nick Mason and Johnnie Walker all joined the exclusive event.

Commenting on his accolade, Sir Frank Williams said: “Number one I must remind myself not to let my ego get the better of me, because this is an amazing magic. It is an honour, something I will try not to brag about.”

In 2010 Mario Andretti, Tony Brooks, Jacky Ickx and Ron Dennis were inducted at the inaugural Motor Sport Hall of Fame event, along with founding members Enzo Ferrari, Tazio Nuvolari, Juan Manuel Fangio, Jim Clark, Sir Jackie Stewart, Sir Stirling Moss, Ayrton Senna and Michael Schumacher.

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

Motor Sport broke new ground last night – for both the magazine and for British racing – when we launched our Hall of Fame event at the Roundhouse in Camden.

It was a star-studded night as some of the biggest names in motor sport joined 400 guests for a celebration that looks set to become an annual highlight of the racing season.

The Hall of Fame format is a popular one in the US, particularly in sport and music. But it’s a new idea for motor racing here in the UK.

Last night our host – and BBC Formula 1 presenter – Jake Humphrey announced the eight ‘founding members’ of the Hall of Fame, a group best described as the most important and successful men from racing history. The eight founders are:

Tazio Nuvolari
Enzo Ferrari
Juan Manuel Fangio
Sir Stirling Moss
Jim Clark
Sir Jackie Stewart
Ayrton Senna
Michael Schumacher.

Moss and Stewart were on hand to mark their inclusion in motor racing’s newest and most exclusive club. Once this ‘virtual’ Hall of Fame had been officially opened, the first four inductees were invited to join them.

The motor racing knights welcomed Moss’s old friend, team-mate and rival Tony Brooks into the Hall of Fame. Brooks has never received the recognition he deserves for his performances with Connaught, Vanwall, Ferrari and Aston Martin during the 1950s, and he was delighted to be presented with a beautiful watch, courtesy of TAG Heuer.

Le Mans legend Jacky Ickx, McLaren boss Ron Dennis and American all-round hero Mario Andretti joined Brooks to complete the line-up of inaugural inductees. They were all there at the Roundhouse to accept the honour.

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Once the formalities were over, the guests were entertained by the fabulous Kyle Eastwood Band. Kyle, son of movie icon Clint Eastwood, is one of the most highly rated young jazz musicians around – and we found out why last night.

To read more about Motor Sport’s special night, don’t miss the April issue of the magazine, which goes on sale on March 5.

Our thanks to: TAG Heuer, Virgin Cargo, Bahrain International Circuit, Mercedes-Benz, NSPCC, the Roundhouse, Hackett, David Weguelin, McLaren, Richard Frankel, DT Performance, Hugo Boss, Sky Sports, Jake Humphrey, LAT Photographic, The Macallan, Lord March, Janet Bradley at Goodwood, Rob Widdows, Sir Paul Vestey, Doug Nye, Stephen Vokins at the National Motor Museum, Richard Gadeselli of Fiat Group Automobiles SpA, Martin Stockham of Gemini Pictures, Renault

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

First, a note of thanks. Last week I was talking about mechanics – you know, the guys who get all the messing around and none of the credit. I was hoping that a few of these chaps would get in touch and, guess what, they have.

So my ‘Mechanics Tales’ series is at least safe for a few months more. Damien (my Editor) is pleased, or relieved, one of the two.

1971 European F2 Championship. Cranleigh, Surrey, UK. 4th November, Rondel Racing F2 Team including L – R: Clive Walton, Ron Dennis, Neil Trundle and Preston Anderson.

I was encouraged to hear from Neil Trundle, a man who has been there, done it, got the t-shirts, the videos and the trophies. Neil established the Project 4 team with Ron Dennis, the outfit that built the ProCars for BMW, wowed the paddocks with its presentation and persuaded the mighty Marlboro to support its bid for the old McLaren team. The rest, as they say, is history.

Dutch Grand Prix, Zandvoort, Holland. 29th – 31st August 1980. Alain Prost (McLaren M30-Ford Cosworth), 6th position.

Neil still works with Ron, at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, where he’s in charge of the gearbox department. This is all to cut a very long story short but Mr Trundle has agreed to tell me a few mechanics tales so you will no doubt enjoy reading those in the months to come.

This week I’m going to see Neil Davis, who worked for Ken Tyrrell for many years and looked after the cars of Jackie Stewart. It was he who featured in our picture of the paddock tunnel at the (proper) Nürburgring last week. Meanwhile, in next month’s magazine, it will be the turn of David “Dorky” Lowe who is a protégé of both Neil Davis and Roy Topp at Tyrrell and who was terribly injured at Imola in 1996 when Jos Verstappen left the pits while Dorky was still re-fuelling the Arrows. But we’ll be looking at a happier phase of his life in the pitlane with Paul Stewart Racing when he looked after David Coulthard in Formula 3.

San Marino Grand Prix, Imola, Italy. 3rd – 5th May 1996. Jos Verstappen (Footwork FA17 Hart).

I won’t be in Monte Carlo this coming weekend but I will be glued to the television. This is absolutely one of my favourite Grands Prix, along with Spa-Francorchamps, Montreal and Monza. Well, and Suzuka, but that’s not every year now. Why do I love Monte Carlo? Because of the speed and the skill. You can feel the speed, get close to the cars for once, and you can only wonder the skill involved in threading a Grand Prix car around the streets. And the noise. Ah, that noise, as the cars scream around the Principality, the shriek of those engines ricocheting off the buildings. First thing in the morning it is just thrilling, makes the hairs on the back of your neck bristle.
Many years ago I watched a practice session in Monaco with Jenks. We stood behind the barrier at the old Tabac and at the swimming pool section. We could, if we’d been mad enough, have reached out and touched the cars. “You’ve got to realise,” he said, peering up at me through his spectacles, “that this place really shows you who is that bit special, who’s really got it. But even the cars at the back are quick, even the slowest drivers are going fast.”

I remember that every time I see these guys dancing and sliding around the streets, the best of them within millimetres of the barriers. Fantastic place.

Monaco Grand Prix, Monte Carlo, Monaco. 25th – 27th May 2007. Lewis Hamilton, McLaren MP4-22 Mercedes.

There may not be much overtaking but overtaking isn’t everything in motor racing. I’d rather watch no overtaking in Monaco than in Hungary or Malaysia, for example. I’d rather watch Hamilton or Raikkonen in Monaco than the whole field at Barcelona. And, it is possible to overtake in Monte Carlo. Not easy, but possible.

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

Monte Carlo, Monaco, May 18 1958. Roy Salvadori, Cooper T45-Climax, retired, and Jack Brabham, Cooper T45-Climax, 4th position, talk to a mechanic.

The eagle-eyed amongst you will know that I am writing a series of stories for the magazine called ‘Mechanics’ Tales’, which is exactly what the title suggests. These are tales from either retired or working mechanics and good fun they are to do because mechanics tend to be down-to-earth types and they almost invariably have a great sense of humour. They need to.

USA Grand Prix – Saturday Qualifying Indianapolis, Indiana, USA, June 16 2007. A Williams mechanic gets some much needed rest.

According to Kevin Eason, who used to be the F1 correspondent of The Times and is now the Insider columnist on the sports pages, there are mechanics in F1 today who are alleged to be paid as much as 100,000 a year. No, I have not made a mistake with the noughts.

This may come as something of a surprise to those who long ago packed away their spanners. You don’t often see such thing as a spanner in the pitlane these days and I hear that some of the old McLaren mechanics started up the Red Toolbox Club, meeting once a year to swap memories and stories. It is said that when the new McLaren Technology Centre was being drawn up Mr Dennis made no allowances for toolboxes in the workshop bays. Knowing Ron, he probably thought they’d make a mess of the place. Well, it is the smartest, cleanest race shop you’re ever likely to see.

Albert Park, Melbourne, Australia, March 29 – April 2 2006. Honda Chief Mechanic Alistair Gibson, Jenson Button, Honda RA106, celebrates pole position.

Anyway, back to the point. The Insider gave the example of Alistair Gibson who until recently was the Chief Mechanic at Honda. He is now retired from the sport and has been producing sculptures made from carbon fibre. Reckon he must know a thing or two about this virtually indestructible material by now. I cannot tell you if Alistair really was picking up that kind of salary but I do know he couldn’t have been making much in the way of bonuses, either at BAR or latterly at Honda. I knew him many years ago when he worked for Robert Synge at Madgwick Motorsport and he’s an excellent team player as well as a first rate mechanic. But a hundred grand a year? Well, good for him I guess, but it seems a huge amount of money compared to some of the older guys I’ve been talking to lately. They did it pretty much for the love of it, and most of their loot came from bonuses when their cars won the races. Still, life moves on, and I’d be interested to see Alistair’s sculptures, which are on show in London.

Mechanics are a certain type of person, they have to be, always on the road and living out of a suitcase. It gets to a lot of them after a while and they often return to the factory for a more regular way of life. Sir Jackie Stewart(above) was one of the few drivers to recognise the efforts of his mechanics and when he retired himself he set up the Grand Prix Mechanics Trust, a charitable organisation that looks after guys who get hurt, or who are going through hard times for whatever reason. This is a great idea and the GPMT has helped a great many mechanics to get back on their feet and to enjoy a comfortable retirement. As you would imagine, Jackie puts a lot of time and energy into this, as he does with all his many interests and organisations.

Nurburgring, Germany, August 4 1968. A mechanic drives the car of Jackie Stewart, Matra MS10-Ford, 1st position, in the paddock.

Why am I going on about mechanics this week? Well, I’m hoping that some of the guys will see this and will be tempted to respond with their stories. Motor Sport is devoting a page every month to the people who are often described as the unsung heroes of motor racing and we’ve had some great stories so far this year.

So, if you are one, or you know one, let me know. There are so many wonderful tales out there.

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

Wow, what a week! And, as one of our bloggers remarked, wow, what a speech! The week in Bahrain was, as you might expect, dominated by revelations in the News of the World. As I was parking my car at Heathrow on March 30 I was blissfully unaware of this venerable publication’s ‘shock-horror’ expose of the FIA president. But not for long. As I dragged my suitcase to the bus stop I heard a shout. “Hey, Rob have you see the News of the World?” I looked up to find A1GP Team India boss Mike Earle, on his way to Delhi, with a rolled up newspaper under his arm. Now, looking at the front page and the double-page spread inside, this was shock and awe. Surely even the president would struggle to survive this one?

Touching down in Bahrain at 5am on the Monday it was already hot. In more ways than one. Emerging from immigration and customs into the sultry warmth of the early morning I heard a shout. “Hey, Rob, have you seen the News of the World?” Looking up, I see David Tremayne of the Independent, this time clutching print-outs from the News International website. Before long, the paddock at Sakhir would be humming with reactions, opinions and suggestions of how these activities came to the notice of the best-selling newspaper in Britain. Not until the racing cars came out on Friday morning did the sound of speculation finally give way to spectating. Max Mosley himself, unsurprisingly, was nowhere to be seen.

Very much in view, however, was Ron Dennis, chairman of the McLaren Group. Immaculate as ever, despite the heat, Ron made a quite exceptional speech to the Bahrain Motorsport Business Forum last Wednesday, a copy of which I immediately sent to my editor. With permission from Matt Bishop, the new head of communications and public relations at McLaren, of course. The former editor of F1 Racing is doing a fine job by all accounts. Later in the day I spoke to Ron and that interview, along with a full report on the first forum to be held in the Middle East, will apppear in next month’s Motor Sport.

Common sense, and a little cowardice, prevents me from commenting any further on the problems facing Mosley. Everybody will have their opinion. I will be interested to see how the sport’s organising body deals with what is undoubtedly some kind of crisis.

Then, refreshingly, there were the old boys. A fine sprinkling of anciens pilotes, who had come to the Gulf to race in the Dubai-based Speedcar Series. The what, I hear you ask? To be brief, the cars are based on NASCAR but are less sophisticated. Big V8 engine, four-speed manual gearbox, and not much in the way of an ‘aero package’. For those who like a bit of detail, the cars weigh in at 1300 kilograms while the 6-litre V8 produces 620bhp at 7500rpm – so they’re heavy, and only quite powerful. More intriguingly, the Speedcar series was germinated, created and delivered to the circuits of the Middle East in just under a year. Impressive. But, yes, the drivers. In a tent in the paddock I find Jean Alesi, Johnny Herbert, Stefan Johansson, Jacques Villeneuve (above) and Heinz-Harald Frentzen, refugees all from the F1 paddock. And a nicer bunch of blokes you couldn’t expect to meet – well, JV didn’t want to talk much, but what’s new? I do like the man all the same. He’s bright, feisty and he still ambles around in absurdly baggy overalls.

“The racing is fun,” says Johnny, “and it’s good to be with your old mates. The cars are not easy to drive on the limit and the brakes are pretty non-existent. I mean you want to be thinking about braking all the way down the straight. And the prize money isn’t bad either.” German touring car veteran and Le Mans winner Uwe Alzen has done much of the winning, and Alesi has won twice. “Why should I stop racing?”, says Jean. “I still love it – the atmosphere, the friendships, the driving. The races are a good show, the fans love it, and I love my life now – my job is my passion, you know?” More racing drivers should be like Alesi, at least I reckon so.

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

April 2, 2008

Your highness, ladies and gentlemen. Traditionally, it’s stories, not speeches that start with the phrase “Once upon a time”. No, speeches don’t tend to begin that way, but I’m going to kick off my speech by telling you a story.

So… Once upon a time, there was a boy called… well… I’ll tell you who he was in a minute. First, I’ll tell you a little bit about him.

The year is 1966, and the place is Surrey, in the southeast of England. He’s 18, he loves motor sport, and he’s working at Coopers, in Byfleet, assembling Formula 2 and Formula 3 cars. He’s also on a day release course, studying motor vehicle technology.

He’s rarely been outside Surrey, and he’s never been abroad. He’s been overseas once, if you can call travelling on a family holiday to the Isle of Wight, by steam ferry, overseas. Then, out of the blue, he’s made an offer: to fly to Mexico City to work on the third Cooper-Maserati, to be driven by local hero Moises Solano, at the Mexican Grand Prix.

Well… what do you think he says? He says yes. He says yes in about five seconds flat! Forty-two years later, he’s your speaker this morning. Because I was that 18-year-old boy.

Formula 1 was very different back then. There were only nine races in the 1966 grand prix season. Sponsorship was virtually non-existent – whereas now Formula 1 attracts sponsorship from some of the world’s biggest and most well-regarded blue-chip multinational corporations, and only two of the races were outside Western Europe – the United States Grand Prix and the Mexican Grand Prix.

There are 18 grand prix this year – exactly twice as many as there were in 1966. Only eight of them are in Western Europe. The other 10 are scattered across all five continents. Two in Eastern Europe. One in North America. One in South America. One in Australia. No fewer than four in Asia. And one here in the Middle East.

Where is Formula 1 slated to be going next? Well, Russia, India, South Korea, Abu Dhabi, Qatar. And perhaps a return to the United States. I welcome this expansion, and heartily commend Bernie Ecclestone for spearheading it. But I have two provisos: Firstly, that the season never expands to more than 20 grand prix, which I regard as a natural logistical limit and, secondly, that we preserve a closed season over the winter. The closed season is essential not only for logistical reasons but also in order to stir up a sense of anticipation in the hearts and minds of Formula 1 fans.

The best-selling editions of Formula 1 magazines are always the season preview editions, for example, not the editions that are published during the season. And that’s because a sense of anticipation has been stirred up in the hearts and minds of Formula 1 fans over the preceding winter. So, as I say, we must preserve that.

Going back to 1966, which it so happens was McLaren’s first year in Formula 1 as well as my first year in Formula 1, teams comprised a dozen people, sometimes fewer. Budgets were tiny. Facilities were rudimentary. Mechanics and engineers worked on their cars on patches of grass or concrete, and the paddock was exactly that: a paddock.

Compare that to the state-of-the-art pit and paddock complexes we use nowadays, exemplified by the stunning facilities here in Bahrain.

Now, though, in order to be successful, a Formula 1 team will need an annual budget measured in hundreds of millions of US dollars. There is, as we all know, a positive move to reduce costs in Formula 1.

Budget-caps are the latest idea. I support any idea that reduces costs in Formula 1. Yes, Formula 1 is expensive to do well – but that doesn’t mean that well-run teams aren’t also well controlled financially, with budgets strictly adhered to. I like to think of myself as a businessman, an entrepreneur. But I’m also a racer, through and through.

For me, the two things go hand in hand. And for Formula 1 to continue to thrive in the way it has thrived all these years, we’ll need rules that foster freedom of entrepreneurship, but we’ll also need rules that encourage close and competitive racing. And if we can frame those rules in such a way as to keep costs in check, or even reduce costs, so much the better.

What would rules like that look like? What one quality might they contain? I’ll tell you the answer to that, in one word. Stability. Because every time the rules are changed, the result is almost always a cost increase. And, because the smaller teams are perhaps less able to meet those cost increases, they may not respond as effectively to a rule change as their more affluent competitors.

And yet we must change the rules, because the world is changing. But, because we also need regulatory stability, our rule changes must be evolutionary, not revolutionary.
We must respond to environmental concerns – and, as I’ve said, perhaps that response may require rule changes – and of course I applaud the carbon replacement programme that the FIA has been running in Mexico for a dozen years or more. Equally, I support the FIA’s other environmental initiatives.

KERS, or Kinetic Energy Recovery Systems, if developed prudently, will be a sensible and innovative system whereby the waste heat produced by braking can be harnessed and re-used in a way that may be adapted and then adopted by the production cars of the future. It’s an exciting area.

Perhaps paradoxically, Formula 1 is uniquely well-placed to showcase and spread awareness of environmental messages.

It’s uniquely well-placed because of three things: (1) Formula 1 budgets are sufficient to enable bright engineering minds to explore exciting new technologies – including green technologies. (2) The engineering resource is already there – particularly on the engine side, which is where most environmental gains will be made. (3) And, last but very far from least, Formula 1 represents a fantastically effective global communication platform via which to spread awareness of such exciting new technologies, beamed via live TV to 140 countries worldwide.

Honda’s myearthdream.com campaign is interesting. But Honda isn’t the only team which is thinking green. Many teams are beginning to think in an ever-greener way. The McLaren Technology Centre is very efficient, very green if you like. Our lake isn’t merely ornamental. It harnesses the waste heat created by our manufacturing and wind tunnel testing process, so that we can re-use that energy to heat and cool our building.

We have a department at the McLaren Technology Centre called Managed Services, whose objective is to find ways of running our building in an ever-leaner, ever-greener way. Its target is clear: to reduce fixed operational costs by a percentage equal to or greater than the prevailing rate of inflation, every year.

No doubt about it, the environment is an area that Formula 1 must continue to focus on, and the FIA has shown great enlightenment in showing the way so early.
Safety, too, is vitally important – and requires regulatory support, maybe even rule changes. Some of the rule changes that the FIA and FIA Institute have ushered in over the past few years have undoubtedly saved drivers’ lives. They’ve done some truly excellent work – especially in recent years.

It’s impressive, too, that, here in Bahrain, tomorrow, under the patronage of the Kingdom of Bahrain Ministry of Health, there will be an FIA Institute Safety Summit, which will feature the launch of the FIA Institute Medical Faculty and the distribution of the FIA Institute Core Curriculum.

So we need new rules, but we need to introduce those new rules very carefully. We need to make Formula 1 greener and safer, and I’m delighted that the FIA and FIA Institute are fully engaged in that process.

We need to make Formula 1 less expensive, too, and we need to do that very carefully as well. Because we should never forget that entrepreneurship was how we got to where Formula 1 is today.

Entrepreneurship. A very important Formula 1 word. Because, in order for Formula 1 to continue to thrive in the way it has thrived over the past half-century, we must foster an environment wherein entrepreneurship can continue to flourish freely.

That freedom of entrepreneurship – exemplified by the involvement in Formula 1 of the Kingdom of Bahrain, via its excellent grand prix circuit as well as via its shareholding in McLaren – is how Formula 1 has become what it has become. Entrepreneurship remains essential to the future development of Formula 1.

And, despite Formula 1’s glorious heritage, its past, the future of Formula 1 is more exciting still. And that’s because its future could, and should, be even more glorious than its past.

And if all the current Formula 1 teams are to be involved fruitfully in terms of the profitable enjoyment of every Formula 1 stakeholder and if the six major car manufacturers currently involved in Formula 1 are to continue to maximise the return on their investment – Mercedes-Benz or Daimler, of course, but also Ferrari or Fiat, Renault, BMW, Honda and Toyota, then the rules by which we go motor racing must be conducive to that entrepreneurship.

Yes, the rules must respond to a changing world, must reflect environmental issues. Yes, the rules must make Formula 1 as safe as it possibly can be, for drivers, for trackside marshals, for trackside photographers, for trackside cameramen, and of course for trackside spectators. Yes, the rules must make the way we go racing greener, more environmentally friendly. We – McLaren – I – support all that. Emphatically.

President Abraham Lincoln once said, “If I had eight hours to cut down a tree, I’d spend the first six hours sharpening my axe.” There’s a huge amount of relevant truth in that. Extensive preparation doesn’t only produce a better result – it produces that result more quickly, too. And our job, as far as the rules are concerned, is a lot more complex than chopping down a tree. Because, at the risk of repeating a cliché, Formula 1 must remain the pinnacle of motor sport – from an engineering point of view as well as from every other point of view.

The pinnacle of motor sport. It may be a cliché, but it’s an important cliché – and a valid one, too.

The day when Formula 1 stakeholders – and I include Formula 1 fans in that categorisation – begin to doubt Formula 1’s status as the pinnacle of motor sport, we are lost. That day must never come. We must never go back to basics. We must never go back to 1966.

I want to say something about what Formula 1 people call “the show”. The spectacle. Because of course the show is all-important, too – and the rules must encourage entertaining racing. But I think they do. I think, as far as encouraging entertaining racing is concerned, the FIA’s Sporting and Technical Regulations already do a pretty good job.

We who work in Formula 1 are very good at beating ourselves up about how our sport needs to be improved from a spectacle point of view. We ask questions in fan surveys like “Would you like to see more overtaking in Formula 1?”, and then we nod sagely and scratch our heads when the answer comes back “Yes”.

But think about it: what would you expect the answer to come back as?! What Formula 1 fan would answer a question like that with the answer “No”?! What Formula 1 fan would say to themselves, “Would I like to see more overtaking in Formula 1… no, I wouldn’t!”? No-one would say that.

People have short memories. People wax lyrical about the 1960s, about Wolfgang von Trips and Jim Clark and so on. Undoubtedly, they were great drivers – just as today’s drivers are great drivers – but was the racing really better then than it is today?

I was there, and I can tell you that it was not. And, while we’re on the subject, it was a lot more dangerous, too. My first grand prix, the 1966 Mexican Grand Prix, was won by the team I was working for, Cooper-Maserati. Our winning driver, John Surtees, won from pole position.

And was it great racing? Was it greater racing than racing today? Well, at the end of the 65-lap race, which took two hours and six minutes to complete, there was only one other car on the same lap as John Surtees. Was the 1966 Mexican Grand Prix an exception? No, it wasn’t. Most of the grand prix that constituted the 1966 Formula 1 season were like that.

I’ve talked a bit about the past, and I hope I’ve shown that the present is a more glorious place. I firmly believe it is. I’ve talked about rules, and the need to foster entrepreneurial freedom and encourage competitive racing via regulatory stability. But I’ve also talked about the need for regulatory evolution, not revolution, in the areas of the environment and safety.

But let me finish by talking about the future, about my 2020 vision, if you like. I passionately believe that the most glorious chapters of Formula 1 history are yet to come. As long as we maintain systems that encourage competitive racing via regulatory stability, and foster entrepreneurial freedom, yet reflect the world’s changing environmental priorities, then the future of Formula 1 can be every bit as glorious as we want it to be.

Vodafone McLaren Mercedes aims to be in the vanguard of the process of writing that glorious chapter, but Formula 1 is fortunate enough to be populated by a number of famous names. Our principal competitors are all famous names, and many of them have been uninterruptedly involved in Formula 1 for a very long time, as we have. Only four of the teams that have ever won drivers’ or constructors’ championships are still in existence today.

But I’ll leave you with two rather less data-inspired comparisons. I hope you like them, and I hope they impress you. I hope they make you think: “Yes, that’s what Formula 1 teams should be all about. That’s what I understand by the phrase ‘pinnacle of motor sport’.”

My first comparison is between a state-of-the-art Formula 1 car and the Lockheed SR-71 ‘Blackbird’. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so they say. Well, I think they’re both beautiful – but their beauty resides in the beholder’s realisation that their form follows their function. No ornamentation for ornamentation’s sake. Not one stylist was involved in either design. Just form following function. And the result is beauty.

But, going further than that, the Lockheed SR-71 ‘Blackbird’ has always fascinated me because, like a state-of-the-art Formula 1 car, it’s an expression of what at first sight seems an unusual and perhaps incongruous combination: namely, big-picture thinking, rapid development and attention to detail.

Think about it. A Formula 1 car exists to win grand prix. To cover 305 kilometres, or 190 miles, in as short a time as possible. It’s the expression of the harnessing of the unstinting efforts of upwards of 1000 utterly focused experts – efforts that are then distilled into 18 motor races driven by two equally focused, equally expert, individuals. It’s a macroscopic effort with a microscopic result, rapidly developed. It’s big-picture thinking and attention to detail.

The scope of its ambition is limitless – to be the best. I find that objective – to be the best – thrillingly open-ended. Literally limitless. And it encourages – no, it demands – an utterly uncompromising technological mindset.

Just like the utterly uncompromising technological mindset that drove the team that designed and built the Lockheed SR-71 ‘Blackbird’, which was conceived to fly so fast, and so high, that nothing could intercept it.

Think about that for a moment. Imagine how daunting, how apparently unattainable, that design brief must have at first appeared. What a vision! What flair!

And to make it capable of flying at 80,000 feet, or 24,000 metres, and at Mach 3, or 2280mph, or 3650km/h, and to make its reconnaissance equipment so powerful that it could take an accurate picture of a car’s licence plate from that altitude.

It was, and could only ever have been, created by individuals whose technological ambition was so towering that it verged on extremism. That it verged on the seemingly impossible. That it made the apparently impossible… possible.

My second comparison is between a state-of-the-art Formula 1 car and a bumblebee. Yes, that’s right, a common-or-garden bumblebee. Why? Because, according to the laws of physics, a bumblebee shouldn’t be able to fly. And yet it can fly.

Again, like the Lockheed SR-71 ‘Blackbird’, it has made the apparently impossible… possible. And why am I telling you all this? What’s the relevance? Because that’s what Formula 1 is all about. Formula 1 is all about making the apparently impossible… possible.

That’s what Formula 1 should always be all about. That’s why so many millions of people watch Formula 1 on TV. That’s why companies invest so many millions of sponsorship dollars in Formula 1. That’s why so many millions of people love Formula 1.

Ingenuity. Entrepreneurialism. Relevance to a changing world. And the relentless pursuit of perfection.

And that’s my 2020 vision for Formula 1. That combination. And it’s by continuing to make the apparently impossible possible, that Formula 1 can, and must, retain its special, iconic, thrilling status.

The pinnacle of motor sport. It’s all we have. It’s what we are.

Thank you.

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

Firstly, the news that the BBC has captured the TV contract for Grand Prix racing inspired the biggest response to any of my Motor Sport blogs so far this year. Thanks to everyone who contributed some intelligent and pertinent debate.

As I write this latest contribution to our platform for debate, I have half my mind on preparing to travel to Bahrain for the F1 Business Forum. The what? Do I hear some yawning out there? I hope not because it’s not as bad as it sounds. Yes, we all dread going to conferences, or ‘forums’, don’t we? Whatever job we may be doing. They are always held in some horrible hotel near Heathrow airport, or in some Holiday Inn in the middle of several unnavigable roundabouts, at least that’s the way it’s always been for me. Too much central heating, no air and piles of files and notepads, jugs of water and cheap ballpoint pens to take away and never use. And have you ever come away from a conference feeling a better person, better empowered to do your job? Probably not.

Anyway, in Bahrain next week – as the teams prepare for the third Grand Prix of the season – many of the F1 fat cats will be taking time to speak at the Motorsport Business Forum. I went to the last one in Monte Carlo at the end of last year and it was good, even very interesting. Max Mosley spoke about his master plan for Formula 1 and Jackie Stewart responded with some carefully worded criticism of the president of the FIA. All good stuff and nice to see someone, especially Stewart, putting the case for the opposition.

This time, in Bahrain, the FIA is not to the fore, except of course that it is running the Grand Prix at the Bahrain International Circuit. This time the speakers will be, in the main, from the teams. The ‘keynote’ speech will be given by Ron Dennis (above), a man I have always much admired and whose life has been devoted to McLaren and the sport he loves. Ron is an enthusiast, a racer and – when he has to be – a politician. What he has to say will be worth hearing and – I hope – worth reporting in the next Motor Sport. Also on the panel of big cheeses will be Nick Fry from Honda, Christian Horner (below) from Red Bull Racing and David Richards (bottom) from Prodrive/Subaru/Aston Martin/You-name-it-he’s-involved-in-it. This man is a dynamo and let’s hope he succeeds in bringing his own team into Grand Prix racing despite the misgivings that others may have about customer cars. What about an Aston Martin F1 team? There is no doubt that Richards would make a terrific job of that – doing everything Jaguar should have done with its attempt.

The point of the forum in the desert is that the Gulf means business, the Gulf is awash with cash, and a consortium of Bahrain business folk already owns a big chunk of the McLaren Group. You may have seen the London taxis bearing the message: Bahrain – Making Financial Connections. What does this mean? I have no idea, but all will become clear next week in the course of the build-up to the Grand Prix. I will be talking to Messrs Dennis, Richards, Fry and Horner about the importance of this region, the significance of new finance in the sport and – oh, yes I nearly forgot – the racing itself, the season so far and all that stuff.

Many of you may be asleep by now, not caring much for the business of sport. Well, it is here to stay, it is how Manchester United can afford Ronaldo, it is how Tiger Woods earns squillions of dollars and it is how President Sarkozy gets to kick a football on the hallowed turf of the new Emirates stadium. Personally, I preferred Highbury, but that’s all irrelevant now. You can make your own judgement in next month’s magazine when I will attempt to penetrate the fog that so often seems to hang over the business of modern motor racing. You can be assured that one of the big men will say something of real interest. If not, there’s always the cars on the track in the sunshine outside.

I’ve got my pad, I’ve got my biros and I’m sure there will be some jugs of icy water. I just need to put my towel on a seat in the front row and make sure I’m close enough to hear between the lines.

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine