Amid frenetic off-track politicking and after two years of Mercedes domination, F1 needs to deliver - starting on the track...
Wednesday 16 March 2016 13:49, UK
At the start of 2016, F1 finds itself at a crossroads, its future direction uncertain and disputed.
At the heart of the matter - and the debilitating uncertainty - is the unanswered question of what F1 actually is and what it wants to be.
Big business, entertainment or sport?
Since the dawn of F1's new turbo era, spawning slower and quieter laps and a new dominant power, F1 has been consumed by an existential crisis of its making. An all-out war to determine who controls F1's next move between Bernie Ecclestone, the sport's long-time supremo, and FIA president Jean Todt allied against the power of the four engine manufacturers has only narrowly been averted but remains a tinderbox ready to ignite again.
Just how did F1 got itself into such a flux?
Can F1 tidy itself up?
'It's a global phenomenon but we are surviving on history, heritage and momentum generated over 65 years,' sighed Sky F1's Martin Brundle, when the chequered flag fell on 2015.
Yet F1's identity crisis can also be considered a product of its own success. Look closely, and there is plenty to be encouraged about.
In 2016, the sport will criss-cross the globe navigating 21 races, the most in its history. Haas will join the grid as the first American team in 30 years. Renault have returned as a fully-fledged constructor - proof positive that F1 remains irresistibly attractive to some of the world's largest car makers. Its world champion is a global superstar whose appeal far transcends the race track. The sport is awash with young talent. Billions of pounds continue to pour into its coffers.
And for all the disagreement and dispute about what F1 ought to be, Formula 1 is a sport which has built itself on constant evolution and reinvention. The sense of crisis, even impending doom, is part of the appeal - and absolutely nothing new.
Talking where it matters
Yet the critics - many of whom appear to possess high-profile positions in F1 itself - will not be sated until the sport successfully does its talking on the track. Too many seasons of late have been humdrum affairs. The drivers have admitted their frustration at racing to tyre-saving delta times. And any relief at the shattering of Red Bull's four-year hegemony has been overtaken by the dulling predictability of Mercedes' relentless superiority. Even the world champions are concerned they are enjoying too much of a good thing for F1.
"Our dominance is bad for Formula One," Mercedes boss Toto Wolff admitted in December. "It makes the racing boring. It becomes predictable how the result is going to be. The sport needs multiple winners. It needs the odd freak result."
Mercedes need it too. A brand as well as a team, the world champions are caught in an awkward predicament between wanting to win and wanting to remain popular. "The moment you become a dominant force, you suffer and your brand suffers," mused Wolff. "So our dominance is bad for Formula One and it's bad for us, but what can I do?"
Not much, because it's up to the rest to catch up. But with McLaren's realistic ambitions for 2016 restricted to a return to podium-scoring respectability and Red Bull predicting a transitional year after their partnership with Renault collapsed, it will fall to Ferrari to challenge Mercedes' stranglehold. Yet if that sounds a sobering reality, then the tantalising promise is that, lead by the highly-rated James Allison and spearheaded by a rejuvenated Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari will give Mercedes a genuine contest this season.
F1 2016 will ultimately be judged, like every year, by its on-track fare. Fortunately, there are several promising portents. The cars are expected to be quicker and louder. "The most exciting thing about F1 right now is young driving talent," says Brundle. Max Verstappen is a superstar in the making. Better still, the fight the F1 world is waiting for, Sebastian Vettel v Lewis Hamilton, may at long last be top of the bill.
"In 2016, all bets are off," predicts Ferrari president Sergio Marchionne. "We have made all the necessary investments in order to bring the title back to Maranello." The gauntlet has been thrown down and F1 should be the victor.
Hamilton has won the last two drivers' championships, Vettel the four before that. If fought from near-identical machinery, theirs would be a rivalry that would stir the interest of even the most sceptical F1 fan.
It can't start soon enough.
