Between NASCAR, Indy500 and F1, America is wetting its whistle: Harish Samtani explores
By Harish Samtani
Miami (USA), 10 May 2023: America, a land of NASCAR and Indy 500 is wetting its whistle in a technically complicated form of racing known as Formula 1 in the rest of the world.
Same yet different!
Technically F1 is as similar to the open-wheel racing in USA as chalk is to cheese!
With two engine makers as backbones of the event, there are 2-gear shifts.
All turning left and it’s minus 5G forces (or thereabouts) stressing neck muscles, the Indy 500 has a unique type of driver.
But the adoration levels are sky high here! F1 drivers have a limited fan following in comparison for sure.
Currently, matters are made worse for F1 since there are no characters left. Only one worth mentioning is Fernando Alonso. His stock in USA soared with the unfounded rumour that he is dating Taylor Swift an icon and that too with more wealth and fame than all f1 drivers combined.
She sings while F1 drivers are constantly facing the music!
Meanwhile, Red Bull should be commended for the vice like grip it’s taken on the championship but f1 fans call it plain boring.
That’s rather unfair since they have gotten to where are with a lot of hard work and relentless effort.
People have forgotten the times when Lewis Hamilton brought F1 to its knees with his ruthless command of the sport. Unfair and brutal racism ensued as a result. It’s obvious that F1 is a Caucasian sport from the obvious lack of coloured personnel in the pit garages.
This aspect needs to be addressed for sure. Can a successful Mexican driver be deemed as non-Caucasian? I don’t know – you tell me. With the FOM increasing its commercial footprint to non-European and American countries something has to give.
And soon. Making it inclusive is the need of the hour. That would actually help it gain a momentum and a larger fan base. This isn’t rocket science! F1 venues in Europe will have to find ways to make it a family friendly affair and not just for the petrol-heads. That era has passed. Let’s make it fun, competitive and inclusive.
A lack of any one of the 3 would make it struggle. F1 has all the other ingredients to power it ahead to a bright future, for the next decade ahead at least! Technology is going thru a sea change and once we are driven by electric eventually one wonders what lies ahead. For now let’s just deal with its current ‘problems!
