The collected works of ScottyB

I’ve always considered Motosport to be all about going fast.

Driving around a track as hard as one can, as fast as one can, while engineers and technical persons make the said vehicle as fast and reliable as possible.

Over the years, this idea has led to some amazing cars - and some equally as impressive race categories.

Amazing cars such as the Porsche 917. Race successes from such cars as the LeMans winning McLaren F1 GTR, the Ford GT40 and most recently, the Audi R8 and its successor, the Audi R10 TDi.

Motorsport is about excitement. To the driver and to the viewer.

Most race categories have enjoyed success, but F1 has (in more recent years) been a subject of much discrimination and disdain from viewers - mainly due to a lack of ‘bumper-to-bumper’ racing, overtaking and exciting racing. True, most races are won in procession and the majority of overtaking manoeuvres are performed during opponent pit stops, but the nature of changing regulations has seen this occur.

The departure from slicks to grooved tyres, the allowances of modern aerodynamic devices, such as winglets and fins. These and more have all added to the modern face of Formula One racing.

They have the audacity to say F1 is too expensive, that development costs too much, yet happily change the rules and regulations every few years, forcing teams and participants to completely redevelop cars and engines to comply with the new regs, costing millions more in R & D.

Leave it the hell alone for a few more years and allow backmarkers and teams with smaller budgets to catch up to the development. If anything needs focus, its bringing back mechanical grip and reducing the reliance on aerodynamic grip. Ban winglets, bring back full slicks.

However, this is apparently too simple a concept to even trial, so we are presented with the (radical) 2011 proposed rules:

Regulations

The best estimates of what these measures will mean in terms of regulations are currently as follows:
• 1.3-1.5 litre, 4-cylinder engine;
• no RPM or boost limit;
• energy flow rate to generate 300kW, including energy recovery from the exhaust;
• 200kW brake energy recovery, front and rear axle;
• 400-600kJ energy return per straight;
• pump-legal bio-fuel;
• FIA specified and supplied undertray and possibly other aerodynamic components;
• 50% 2007 downforce;
• adjustable, regulated wings and cooling;
• automatic downforce adjustment when following another car;
• lap times and top speeds maintained at 2009 levels;
• over 50% reduction in fuel consumed.

I really wonder at the direction they are taking sometimes…

Source: autosport.com