G.P. in the "Real" World - What Would You Do?

[Kyle Love]

Originally Posted by Ben Lauer

Ferrari chose option 1. They won the race, they won money, and they won points. Ferrari's bank account is now more attractive, but all the people in Indy and all around look down on them for that choice. Did they make the right choice? I believe that time will tell, but for sure the manufacturers will take a closer look at the forces these cars have because these cars keep accelerating fast, and stopping faster.

Ferrari SHOULD NOT be looked down upon. They won by following the rules. Why should they or any of the Minardi's or Jordan's adjust their car/driving style to include a chicane put in for ill-prepared cars?

One last point for some of you who aren't really in the racing "circle" Indy cars go approximately 20-40 mph faster then the F-1 cars at Indy. The F-1 wrecks look a lot more violent, in-part to the EXTREME downforce that those cars have.

(side note: if you have any racing questions, I can at least make an educated guess if not know the answer to your question.)

Now to answer PeteK's questions:

What would I do if I were Ferrari? Celebrate another terrific win with no regrets, they prepared the car with good parts, why should they regret it?

If I was on a Michelin-running team? I would look into how much R&D Michelin does compared to Bridgestone and if they don't meet certain standards, I would switch to Bridgestone tires. A big mess up like this from a main-stream tire company is ridiculous.

What if I were an IMS organizer? I would have a closed-door face to face discussion with FIA officials and "hammer" out a deal to make the fans happy, considering fans is the reason why they are racing. Maybe also think about bringing other road race cars to Indy such as ALMS (American LeMans Series) or maybe even the motorcycles to IMS, to see if those don't grab more fans then F-1. I seriously doubt it would, but it would be a way to make the fans like the speedway more.

What if I was a F-1 official? I would require Michelin to refund the fans money and "dock" them tire constructor points and take away any points that the teams won by not racing. (positions 7 and 8 on the finishing order) Also, make a rule change, If tires are found to be unsafe to race, ALL teams will be aloud an extra set of tires. Changes to the track will not be aloud once the first lap of practice had been completed.

Anyone else have comments about my comments or have different ways of handling the situation?