The Spanish and European Grand Prix are both suggesting that they will need better deals if they are to continue hosting races in Barcelona and Valencia respectively. Politicians are often clever people, but the people making these suggestions are anything by smart in the streetwise ways of F1. Indeed, they are right up there with HRT when it comes to doing the right thing in terms of F1 logic. Bernie Ecclestone must think it is still Christmas.
Mr E is looking to lose a race or two in the next couple of years and the two Spanish races are basically throwing themselves on the bonfire with such suggestions. One can imagine that Mr E will now merrily play them off against one another until he gets one of them up to a price is good enough to make them feel good and allow him to bring in an additional high-paying venue. This will mean that he will still have two races and will collect more money overall. The other option is that he will play the role of Mr Nice Guy and offer them alternation at a higher price, but once every two years, and thus he will make even more money while also depriving Spain of one of its events…
joeblogsf1 
I wouldn’t mind such a situation. Get rid of two of the more boring races of the year? No tears from these eyes.
Now only if this could result in a permanent, annual Belgian GP at Spa…….
Neither is a good circuit anyways so I would happily lose them. Valencia simply has no real straights and barcelona being used in pre-season testing is too familiar to all the teams and drivers.
We really don’t need to Spainish races anyway, though it would be a shame to lose the European Grand Prix, which could be taken by France instead of the propose French/Belgian rotation.
Young Bernie has his head screwed on!! He has a bright future.
Apparently the public/private entities writing the checks for these two events don’t appreciate the “value added” economic effect of hosting the F1 circus.
OR they think they’re smarter then Mr. E. Me thinks they are bringing a pen knife to an artillery duel and don’t know it.
Welcome back Joe,
I don’t see it that way myself. Both facility’s are just saying that due to the ecomnic hardship that Europe is facing right now, they simply can not afford the high fees to host F1 races.
Personally I think anything that removes Valencia from the calendar is a good thing.
I would agree that Bernie wants a race in Russia and South Africa and perhaps this “oops” made by Spain will come back and bite them in the arse (ass, here in America).
Yeah, but the pols win. They can blame Bernie, or anyone, any which way:
“He conned us / our predecessor first . . . We need austerity, must get deal, b’stard didn’t give us any give”.
Followed by,
“It’s the ECB’s / Italian’s / Merkozy’s / Property developers’ fault”.
“Greedy billionaire 1 percenter”.
Not forgetting,
“why are you complaining? You peons can’t afford tickets, get working and save the economy, lazy tax evading little beggars!”
. . .
Alan B’stard* had it right when it came pols wherever they be. Only way is ruthlessness and wicked humor.
. . .
I thought BE’s MO was to play nice guy, throw a bone, and not post the bone (check) until cannibalism set in, but that’s just splitting hairs . .
* http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_New_Statesman
(I think if i ever have a major funny one, Alan B’Stard is the kind of pyscho I’d like my brain to twist itself into. But, pending a test, might just be a vitamin B absorption thing. Rather disappointed to loose the chance š
Hey, maybe this solves the problem of the whole Spa-Paul Ricard mess. Instead, just have one race in Spain (hopefully Barcelona), and then you have room for Spa to stay were it is… Too bad it won’t solve the money issue…
-TR
Sometimes it’s like he doesn’t even have to try…
please deprive us of Valencia
Dull
Dull
Dull
Correct.
I think I’m with you on Mr E. Joe, the nonchalance, the sense of humour and the speed of his blade. Man’s a legend.
I hope this does not result in Valencia becoming the Spanish GP in place of Barcelona.
The venues that make for poor races have a very nasty habit of sticking around in F1 for the long haul.
Formula 1 track owners assocation (FTOA) is more than wellcome!
Not impossible, I suppose, that they both need to cut expenditure and are looking to BE to do the job for them.
So you don’t think they are aware of this already?
What will happen is the circuit owners/promoters will form a union called the Collective of Formula One Circuits or ‘COFOC’ Will Hungary be part of this, one wonders…
Keep it going Bernie, all the best!
Nice idesa, but there is no-one with the oomph to make that happen.
COFOC-LOL
Formula One Circuits Organizing Party?
Formula One Circuits Organizing Forum!
Hello Joe,
You’re views on the world F1 are truly fantastic and pretty much ‘on the money’
The team principles should be subscribing to your site!!!!
If i ever get to run an F1 team (lets face lots of stupid things DO happen in F1) then i will be calling you to advise (and there will be no european airlines in sight!)
Still miss F1 News, that was BRILLIANT, what is the rest of the gang up to.
Your recollection of your early days with the mighty Gerhard Berger had me in tears š
best regards
Nas.
It is sad to think that we may see spa only once every two years while there are such average grand prix circuits such as Barcelona and Valencia both still on the calendar.
Would anyone cry if we lost the Spanish races?
Nope. Everyone hates Valencia, Barcelona doesn’t allow any over-taking, even with DRS + KERS.
So just like Monaco then?
There’s a big difference there. An F1 car is exciting to watch around Monaco, even when it’s alone. You see the car twitching over the bumps, the drivers hurling the car into the corners, fighting every inch… almost grazing the barriers…
Then you have Valencia, where they look like karts that ended up on the big-car track. They’re boring to watch and none of the corners are inspiring in the least.
Monaco is a track with character (and does provide a few overtaking places for the ambitious drivers), whereas Valencia is a bland, glass-smooth track where it’s virtually impossible to make a mistake and likely easy to learn and perfect as a driver.
So no, not like Monaco at all.
The spanish fans? Of which there are quite a few these days.
I’m going with “they want dumped, since they can’t afford to break contract on their end.”
Somewhere in there you may have had a point, assuming that is Bahrain wasn’t likely to fall by the wayside or the US vaunted GP’s follow in it’s footsteps.
Then an analysis of the Chinese and Spanish races along with falling audiences for broadcasters never mind the ‘escalators’ and costs the circuits are contracted to bear, ought to suggest F1 is losing its attractiveness to investors and fan alike.
Could it be that being so close to something it’s difficult to see the writing on the wall.
Am I the only one who thinks it might be better to retain Valencia and ditch Barcelona (not that I think either is much cop)? Neither provides much in the way of overtaking so I don’t think anyone can really make a case for Barcelona above Valencia from that angle. And at least Valencia provides some different scenery, if nothing else.
And I thought that the Barcelona circuit was destroyed when that chicane was inserted prior to the final corner. It has done little to improve overtaking at the circuit whilst eliminating a corner that was at least interesting as a high-speed affair if nothing else. Now the circuit has precisely zero interesting corners. It would have been better to tighten Turn 1 by making it more of a right-angle.
They can stick Valencia somewhere cold, dark and miserable, and put Abu Dhabi in there with it, as far as I’m concerend
That actually might liven things up a bit!