F1 overrated and boring?

Is it just me is Formula One the most overrated, boring, expensive, non-Green (whatever that means) sport on the planet?

A bunch of super rich folk travel around the world racing (sic!) wide cars on narrow tracks so that they can rarely overtake anyone, with thousands of pages of unfathomable rules, zero transparency on decisions from the organisers and they race until the Dutch kid wins before jumping on their jet planes and zooming off somewhere else on the planet.

Bound to get a few heckles raised as it’s probably a very Marmite thing now, luv it or hate it?

Yep, it is very boring – not helped by lack of personalities and far too much corporate shit (which comes with the money)

I have no interest in it but then I am pretty sure a lot of people would have no interest in watching Paris Roubaix today which I on the other hand love.

I used to be a fan. I would get up at silly o’clock and watch the Japanese grand prix.

But to be honest it doesn’t interest me now. Every track seems to be iconic and the drivers favourite and there’s hours of waffle before and after. I only watch the highlights and even then I get through them in 10minutes if I last to the end.

I’ve always been a fan of Motorsport but I don’t watch it anymore

Yep, has been for years.  I think I’ve said it on here before, but the fastest qualifier should be made to toss a coin before the start, and if he calls it wrong reverse the grid. That’d make it more interesting!

As it is, it’s a tyre changing and tactics competition.

I’ve a mate who has a yacht harbour side in Monaco and he’s there every year. It’s a weekend of invites and business for him. I get the impression that most folk are there to be seen or do business. Mind you he’s not in the fans enclosure which can seem a bit 90s football at times

Same argument can be levelled at any major sport – I find tennis and golf as boring as hell, but millions don’t.

For me the Schumacher era was far more boring than now. I did like the 80’s when they popped engines in after every session but you can’t do that now! And even back then the field spread was way greater than it is now.

As it is, it’s a tyre changing and tactics competition.

It’s always been that.

It is a pretty big achievement to spend that much money to create a spectacle that is so lacking.

But maybe I’m not the right person to judge – I’m far more a sport participant than an observer. And in that nothing I do anymore is competitive I’m not sure its fair to call what I like sport even – just outdoor adventure and exercise maybe.

Started watching F1 during the Mansell era but no longer watch it as I don’t see the point, where’s the excitement in watching a parade of cars behind the pole sitter drive around a track for 70 laps?

They promised improvements with the new cars 3 years ago but they are bigger, heavier and still rely on aero too much, probably thanks to Newey clawing it back.

Too much reliance on tyre conservation, while not new, means that (relative) risk doesn’t pay. Although Tsunoda:s overtakes were great today.

I agree the Corporate side has become really cringe.

Problem is global audience is up thx to DTS so not much incentive to rock the boat…

I’ve preferred watching WEC and the likes of GT3 races for years. I’m not sure if like the-muffin-man says that the Schumacher years were worse but for me that’s when it started it’s fall to what we have today.

Also decisions like groved tyres instead of cutting back on aerodynamics to me showed they didn’t have a clue.

Picked at random – British GP result from 1982. Only ten finishers and 10th place was 3 laps down. Rose tinted specs are very popular!..🤣

It’s always been a bit boring .

For me it went too far when the tracks got massive run off areas so if it went wrong there was little consequence

I’d partially agree with the OP.
Yes it’s boring
But it’s not really a sport. It involves engines. Driving is something that you do to get you to your sport ( if you are badly located) or it is something you do to deliver shit somewhere. It’s just a utility, nothing more.

And also, a la convert, sport is something you DO. It’s not something you watch. If you’re watching it it pretty much ceased to be a sport as far as you are concerned. People who say they are really into a sport, but just sit on their arse watching it are deluded. They’re not into sport, they’re into sitting on their arse.

Just x4 10ths between 4th, 5th and 6th though, for all we know there was an almighty fight for many laps on that 1982 British GP.

Started watching F1 during the Mansell era but no longer watch it as I don’t see the point, where’s the excitement in watching a parade of cars behind the pole sitter drive around a track for 70 laps?

Very much this. I used to love Formula One but haven’t bothered watching a race for years now. Watch the first lap, see who comes out of the first corner in the lead and theres your winner 70 pointless laps later

Its spirit-crushingly dull. It says it all that the documentary about the behind the scenes stuff in Drive To Survive is about a million times more entertaining than the actual racing.

Could you even technically class it as ‘racing’ any more? Its not like any overtaking takes place, is it? Its just some really fast advertising billboards driving in a formation dictated by how much money the team has

Plenty of overtaking in todays race – just not by Max. Even Checo had to overtake! And did two overtakes into 130R.

Schumacher years ended my interest.

wide cars on narrow tracks

I know this is nerdy now but late 80’s cars were wider. McLaren MP4/4 was 5 inches wider than todays cars. It was lighter and shorter though! 🙂

But it’s not really a sport. It involves engines. Driving is something that you do to get you to your sport ( if you are badly located) or it is something you do to deliver shit somewhere. It’s just a utility, nothing more.

And also, a la convert, sport is something you DO. It’s not something you watch. If you’re watching it it pretty much ceased to be a sport as far as you are concerned. People who say they are really into a sport, but just sit on their arse watching it are deluded. They’re not into sport, they’re into sitting on their arse

I am confident that watching and taking part are not mutually exclusive. I play tennis, I watch tennis. I cycle, I watch cycling. In fact one helps the other.

As for Motorsport not being a sport because of engine, that’s an opinion but they need to change the name then. It certainly is physically VERY demanding, even on a mere track day.

Well I’m off to Spa in the summer and as for all this corporate stuff , golf ,tennis, premier league football, yachting all have their hangers on that probably don’t watch just want to be seen just rub shoulders

Could you even technically class it as ‘racing’ any more? Its not like any overtaking takes place, is it? Its just some really fast advertising billboards driving in a formation dictated by how much money the team has

How would you know? You haven’t watched it for years by your own admission 😂

Also, cost cap.

I watch Drive to Survive, which is ace. A summary rather than the actual racing, which is mind-numbingly tedious

I view it as a sort of Match of the Day, if it had access to the dressing rooms afterwards. Except obviously every game is a turgid nil – nil draw between Everton and Burnley, with no top-of-the-table 6 pointer ding-dings or seven goal thrillers. 😂

I prefer my motorsport to have a lot of overtaking…. or a lot of attempted overtaking.

But it’s not really a sport. It involves engines. Driving is something that you do to get you to your sport ( if you are badly located) or it is something you do to deliver shit somewhere. It’s just a utility, nothing more.

And also, a la convert, sport is something you DO. It’s not something you watch. If you’re watching it it pretty much ceased to be a sport as far as you are concerned. People who say they are really into a sport, but just sit on their arse watching it are deluded. They’re not into sport, they’re into sitting on their arse.

What a load of arrogant, gate keeping toss. Of course you can be interested, passionate, and into something you can’t do yourself. I love rock music, can’t play an instrument for shit. So am I deluded whenever I go to a gig or put a record on?

A sport is an activity that involves physical exertion, skill and competition. Formula 1 includes all of these aspects.

“Started watching F1 during the Mansell era but no longer watch it as I don’t see the point, where’s the excitement in watching a parade of cars behind the pole sitter drive around a track for 70 laps?”

Ironically, Mansell won eight of the first eleven rounds in ’92 (all from pole) to seal the title with more than a quarter of the season still to run. 🙂

I view it as a sort of Match of the Day

Fine if you like watching your football results 4 months after the season has finished!! 🤣

DTS is full of made-up bollocks and false rivalries. It’s like watching The Crown – based on real events with a lot of artistic licence.

As opposed to cricket, golf and many others which are known for their nail biting tension at all times?

DTS is full of made-up bollocks and false rivalries. It’s like watching The Crown – based on real events with a lot of artistic licence.

…and yet this is what it now takes to make F1 even remotely interesting

That says it all really. They’ve had to turn it into a soap opera because the actual ‘racing’ is so dull

I used to watch but don’t anymore. All tyres this and aero that blah blah and then a procession with the odd flounce. Not quite as dull as golf and tennis as at least they do get the odd spot of rain which invariable leads to a safety car when the commentator can then drone on about the safety car and driver for a few minutes.

Look at the crowd that goes to pay on Sunday we’ll over twice the cost of a premier league game at Silverstone early July.

Cricket exciting seriously?

Look at the crowd that goes to pay on Sunday we’ll over twice the cost of a premier league game at Silverstone early July.

Isnt that all just hob-nobbing  on corporate expense accounts though?

It seems to me that modern formula one is a bit like olives. Nobody really likes them but certain people have to pretend they do as a sort of  affectation, while drinking luke warm Chardonnay 😉

DTS is full of made-up bollocks and false rivalries. It’s like watching The Crown – based on real events with a lot of artistic licence.

That’s personally why I’d rather watch DTS than sit through the racing 😂.  Give me some touring cars (bring back the Volvo estates!) GT’s or motorbikes to watch.

My older son is, however, very into both the F1 racing and DTS.

I think maybe there’s a bit of the test cricket or dare I say it cycling grand tours about watching it.  If you’re really interested you will see tactics and things that just aren’t apparent if you can’t be bothered to get totally absorbed.  Pit strategy and processions have been a thing since I was a kid and I go back to the Mansell era.

He’s also interested in the technology and the strategy as well as the (immense) skill of the drivers as well as being pretty handy at the F1 games on the Xbox.  I think he sees stuff I don’t and he likes the connection with the gaming.

I started watching F1 back in the late 70s coz my mum watched it. (She once went out with Mike Hawthorn back in the day.)

Haven’t watched it for about 15yrs. Whilst the engineering is interesting and the politics intriguing – – the racing is just plain tedious. It’s only ever livened up because they’ve tried increasingly convoluted rules to do so.

Motorcycle racing is far more of  a test of skill. F1 is 99% the car.

Discussions about other sports are irrelevant. The demographs show that people who watch F1 and people who watch Football \ Rugby \ Cricket \ Tennis etc are, generally, completely separate from each other.

Motorcycle racing is far more of a test of skill. F1 is 99% the car.

True that. Every so often a bottom ranking MotoGP rider comes into F1 with his superior skill and wipe the floor with all the established drivers, wins a couple of WDCs on the trot, makes a few dozens millions and goes back to bike riding, but still doesn’t win there.

It’s a no from me too. Tend to watch sports I’ve played so I can relate.

I’ve recently taken to watching the 8 minute highlights on YouTube – until today, that is 🤷‍♂️

True that. Every so often a bottom ranking MotoGP rider comes into F1 with his superior skill and wipe the floor with all the established drivers, wins a couple of WDCs on the trot, makes a few dozens millions and goes back to bike riding, but still doesn’t win there.

Think you’re somewhat missing the point, or perhaps I didn’t express it correctly…

F1 drivers are massively skilled, obviously, but the guy with the best car wins.  Or his team mate does.

In bike racing it’s handy having the best bike but it’s not an automatic win if you do. Rider input is a far greater factor than driver input is in F1.

Seasons like 2012, with seven different winners in the first seven races, are a rare blip since Hamilton’s first season in 2007.

These days I’d much rather see drivers rotate through the teams through a season, allow teams to develope the cars more between rule changes (which means higher budgets), or standardise the car specs.

I mean, I suppose you could always not watch it?

I think football is the most boring sport ever, so I don’t watch it. (But I don’t feel the need to start a thread about it).