Two USA GP's?

[Sonic]

Autosport are reporting that the deal with Austin does not put the nail in the coffin of the other US options with a US west and US east possible.

I don't know if this is just autosport trying to save face having been caught on the hope re: Austin, but I'm all for two Stateside races. Hell if Germany or now Spain can do it, why not the USA?

You thoughts peeps?

[Mark]

Personally I think Spain or any other country should not have two grand prix's anyway!

[maximilian]

With places such as FRANCE missing from the calendar, no other country should be hosting TWO GPs - not Germany, not the USA, and CERTAINLY NOT Spain. The only place I would make an exception is for the "San Marino" GP, just because Monza and Imola should be on the race calendar as eternally classic venues. Let's get ONE race in the USA first, if that even really happens. And I swear, if any taxpayer money gets shoved down Bernie's throat for this Austin venture, I'm gonna have a FIT :mad:

[markabilly]

Instead, I think Lybia and north korea should get one each, followed by Iran....no doubt, bernie would get more sub rosa cash

[DBell]

And I swear, if any taxpayer money gets shoved down Bernie's throat for this Austin venture, I'm gonna have a FIT :mad:

I hate to bring news that will cause a fit, but...

http://www.totalf1.com/full_story/view/342257/Texas_state_to_pay_25m_for_F1_in_2012/

I understand how you feel about this. If I lived in Texas, I would be having a fit myself.

[ShiftingGears]

And I swear, when taxpayer money gets shoved down Bernie's throat for this Austin venture, I'm gonna have a FIT :mad:

Fixed it for you ;)

[Sonic]

Personally I think Spain or any other country should not have two grand prix's anyway!

With the current number of GP's I agree. However if there is to be 25 odd races within two years then I have no problem with two GP's in countries that warrant it.

[UltimateDanGTR]

With places such as FRANCE missing from the calendar, no other country should be hosting TWO GPs - not Germany, not the USA, and CERTAINLY NOT Spain.

:up:

[V12]

I wouldn't complain too much, it's happened in the past and America is a big country, providing it wasn't at the expense of yet another European casualty, for instance the Middle East doesn't need three races (although I've heard rumours Turkey's future is a little shaky).

And yes, France needs to be back on the schedule, they invented motor sport and the Grand Prix as we know it. It's like having England never host a Football World Cup/Euro Cup/Champions League final, or Greece never host an Olympic Games.

Of course as ever, Bernie's wallet will dictate what happens, and to hell with what the fans want.

[ioan]

Let's see first at least one F1 GP in the US and we shall talk then about a 2nd.

[Sonic]

Let's see first at least one F1 GP in the US and we shall talk then about a 2nd.

From reports it doesn't look like Bernie will be waiting that long. According to that article the hosting fee is among the lowest of the season, so knowing our Bernie he'll want to double team and get his money's worth out of uncle sam.

[truefan72]

I wouldn't complain too much, it's happened in the past and America is a big country, providing it wasn't at the expense of yet another European casualty, for instance the Middle East doesn't need three races (although I've heard rumours Turkey's future is a little shaky).



last I checked Turkey is a European country and not the middle east. And the 2 races in Abu Dhabi and Bahrain are fine by me. That's what makes a good "worldwide series"

Thankfully the call on what the middle east does or doesn't need vis-a-vis F1 is not your responsibility.

[nigelred5]

With places such as FRANCE missing from the calendar, no other country should be hosting TWO GPs - not Germany, not the USA, and CERTAINLY NOT Spain. The only place I would make an exception is for the "San Marino" GP, just because Monza and Imola should be on the race calendar as eternally classic venues. Let's get ONE race in the USA first, if that even really happens. And I swear, if any taxpayer money gets shoved down Bernie's throat for this Austin venture, I'm gonna have a FIT :mad:

Well start stompin, cause it's been reported the first $25M the State of texas is contributing is for paying Bernie's sanctioning fee.



In a country the size of the US, one race is insignificant to 90% of the population. Two might actually garner a little interest. Three GP's on the entire North American Continent is rather miniscule considering Europe has 8. 9 if you lump in Turkey, even though the race is actually in Asia( Teh track is west of the Bosphorus which traditionally defines the border of the Asian subcontinent). Hell, the Aarabian Peninisula has more GP's.

[maximilian]

Well start stompin, cause it's been reported the first $25M the State of texas is contributing is for paying Bernie's sanctioning fee.

In this economic climate where States are forced to make severe cutbacks to ESSENTIAL services such as education, this is inexcusable. :mad:

[markabilly]

25M from state funds...well, my oh my, bernie done found a guvermant tit to suk on...governor's fund??

Well since perry was a protege of wubba ( that is george w bush JR to you non anmericans) it should be no surprize, but while bush might have been a prostitute for some in the opinion of some, he was high class and high dollar....

Perrry is what you call a back street, common streetwalker, much like a $1.00 whore looking for a $2 john. So i guess birds of a feather...benerie done found what he wants....

rumor has had it that perry gets a lot of money filtered in on deals, like the time one of his aides got paid millions to sell and be a lobbyist for some drug company who sold some vacinne, and then perry issued an edict that every school child girl must get a shot or two...of that there vacinne...not that there was any connection (of course that idea got shot down) :down:

Or when perry has been selling all those toll roads and other state facilities to Spanish companies.....Bush might not have been the best, but he was not selling his soul and the government property for cheap $$$$$$$$ on the side......

Yep, ole benrie done found his guvermant tit, right on da texas guvner perry.......who would have thought it... :eek:

shame on that Indyanapolis Guvener for not having bigger tits, thAt ole race might still be at indy..... :rolleyes:

toobad too, that the New yankers--- in NYC are also lacking in the large tit department, or st devote migh have got his wish gee think all of those dumbies over in the IRL forum, why wernt they smart enuff to go get on the titie???Huh???? who needs tobaccco money when you got the "tit-nit-wit"

[truefan72]

In this economic climate where States are forced to make severe cutbacks to ESSENTIAL services such as education, this is inexcusable. :mad:


or they are thinking that they could get a return on their investment with some clever promotion, marketing, tourism, adjoining events and of course the ticket fees. As well as providing jobs which helps the economy.
just a thought

I would prefer it somewhere else but at the end of the day its their money

[maximilian]

or they are thinking that they could get a return on their investment with some clever promotion, marketing, tourism, adjoining events and of course the ticket fees. As well as providing jobs which helps the economy.
just a thought

I would prefer it somewhere else but at the end of the day its their money
That would be a nice plan, but all I ever hear is that almost every race is losing money down Bernie's throat who laughs all the way to the bank...

[Sonic]

That would be a nice plan, but all I ever hear is that almost every race is losing money down Bernie's throat who laughs all the way to the bank...

Indeed. If I remember the figures correctly somewhere like spa needed to sell something in the region of 80,000 tickets to break even - that's just mental!!

[DexDexter]

last I checked Turkey is a European country and not the middle east. And the 2 races in Abu Dhabi and Bahrain are fine by me. That's what makes a good "worldwide series"

Thankfully the call on what the middle east does or doesn't need vis-a-vis F1 is not your responsibility.

Turkey is not a European country, although Istanbul is half Europe/half Asia. It's not considered to be part of Europe geographically or culturally.

[V12]

Turkey is not a European country, although Istanbul is half Europe/half Asia. It's not considered to be part of Europe geographically or culturally.

:up:

[anthonyvop]

In this economic climate where States are forced to make severe cutbacks to ESSENTIAL services such as education, this is inexcusable. :mad:

I would rather see my government spend money on a economic engine like an F-1 race than continue to throw money to the School boards who waste it on stupid programs and Unions instead of teaching the kids.

My wife is a school teacher and the biggest raise she ever got was when she quit the union.

[555-04Q2]

From no race to two races :?: I like optimism!

[maximilian]

I would rather see my government spend money on a economic engine like an F-1 race than continue to throw money to the School boards who waste it on stupid programs and Unions instead of teaching the kids.

My wife is a school teacher and the biggest raise she ever got was when she quit the union.
Something that loses money isn't an economic engine, it's a burden on taxpayers.

Vastly off-topic:
Like you said, most unions are paid for by optional dues, and have nothing to do with public spending, as they are not government entities. My wife is a school teacher, too, and I can see the painful impact reduced State spending has had directly on essential services the children receive. As such, I do not approve of a State throwing $25 million in public funds down a billionaire's ever growing sinkhole of greed.

[nigelred5]

Something that loses money isn't an economic engine, it's a burden on taxpayers.

Vastly off-topic:
Like you said, most unions are paid for by optional dues, and have nothing to do with public spending, as they are not government entities. My wife is a school teacher, too, and I can see the painful impact reduced State spending has had directly on essential services the children receive. As such, I do not approve of a State throwing $25 million in public funds down a billionaire's ever growing sinkhole of greed.

Can't disagree with a thing you said there. I have both of my kids as well as 4 retired/former teachers, one current teacher and two public university professors in my family. School budget cuts HURT immediately.

Accelerating a planned and MUCH needed repaving project of city streets with previously allocated funds is one thing. Paying what amounts to a bribe to B.E is just wrong in this or any economy IMHO. If a private organization wants to do so, so be it.

[AndyRAC]

Indeed. If I remember the figures correctly somewhere like spa needed to sell something in the region of 80,000 tickets to break even - that's just mental!!

Not just mental, but utterly disgraceful!! :mad:
Probably explains why prices for Britain are extremely high....

[ClarkFan]

Let's see first at least one F1 GP in the US and we shall talk then about a 2nd.

I have to agree. As a US F1 fan, I would love to see half a dozen GPs in the U.S. But I would rather see one race succeed than two races fail. And since the USGP left Watkins Glen in 1980, getting one race to succeed has been a tricky proposition.

[Dr. Krogshöj]

That would be a nice plan, but all I ever hear is that almost every race is losing money down Bernie's throat who laughs all the way to the bank...

It depends on how you define money looser. In most countries the government pays or helps paying the annual sanctioning fee which is in the region of $25 million. In 2007, the US, the UK, Italy and Brazil were the only four countries where the promoter didn't get any public money. Some of the goverment's investment is offset by additional tax revenues generated by the event. Some of the investment is turned into "ad time" for the country or community that hosts the race.

In the case of my native Hungary, the 2007 sanctioning fee was $16.56 million, which was bankrolled by the national government. The Hungarian National Tourist Office estimated the additional tax revenue at $13.2 million and the publicity for the country between $18.5 and $25.5 million. Obviously, these are estimates and their validity can be disputed. There is no way to exactly measure these effects so it is a judgement call. Ultimately, it is up for the elected officials to decide what's best for the taxpayers. Here, there is a cross-party consensus that hosting the race is beneficial for the country.

Anyway, Bernie doesn't laugh the money all the way to the bank since he doesn't own Formula 1 anymore. He is a CEO and his annual retainer is in the region of Ł4 million, at least according to the books.

[Redstorm]

As a fan from Texas I am exstatic that the race "is" coming here. As a taxpayer towards the funds going towards Bernie's pocket, I not at all happy. My biggest concern, however, lies in what did Perry give for the Devil's blessing.....

[Dave B]

It depends on how you define money looser. .....
Sorry for the snip, but I do agree with your post. Many promoters may lose money, but what we're talking about is the regional economy. Every ticket sold attracts a sales tax (in most countries), the staff employed as a result of the race pay income tax, the tourists pay tax on their hotel bills and airline tickets, and over the longer term the region may become more attractive to business and tourism.

Look at Silverstone for example. The race itself may not make much if any money, but it's a showcase for the circuit and the "Silverstone" brand gives cachet to hundreds of motorsport based businesses in the area. Hotels and B&Bs, restaurants and many other suppliers receive a boost from the Grand Prix, all of which contribute to the exchequer one way or another.

[NaBUru38]

With places such as FRANCE missing from the calendar, no other country should be hosting TWO GPs - not Germany, not the USA, and CERTAINLY NOT Spain. The only place I would make an exception is for the "San Marino" GP, just because Monza and Imola should be on the race calendar as eternally classic venues.
The United States is big enough to have two F1 races in a year. Montreal+Indy or Imola+Monza or Spa+Nürburgring are less fair than Austin/Los Angeles or Austin/New York. Distance between tracks matter, population around them too. And Monaco is close enough to France, just not to Paris.

[Redstorm]

As much as I would love to have Indy and Austin I think we Americans must earn our stripes before talking about two races... If it gets Imola or France back I'll stick with the one. I'm not greedy. Now if it were to go to, say, Korea or Abu Dahbi or.....oh wait.....

Hey Bernie!!! Put back what should be on the calender! Just because it pays YOU good, doesn't mean it's good for the sport. If we can't hack it we have no greater a right to a race than Turkey.

Come on fellow Yanks! Let's show them we deserve it!

[call_me_andrew]

Having 2 races in the United States does not bother me as long as the European Union has 7.

I find it comforting that fiscal conservative Rick Perry has found his inner Keynesian.

[Redstorm]

I would like to vote "fiscally conservative Rick Perry" for post of the year. That's almost as funny as claiming Bernie as Santa! This race is somehow connected to Perry and a run at the WH, make my words.....

[Mia 01]

When are they starting to build the new track?

Is there any official backup track confirmed?

[DexDexter]

Having 2 races in the United States does not bother me as long as the European Union has 7.

I find it comforting that fiscal conservative Rick Perry has found his inner Keynesian.

The European Union? You're not suggesting that's a one country? :D :D

[call_me_andrew]

It might as well be.

[markabilly]

As a fan from Texas I am exstatic that the race "is" coming here. As a taxpayer towards the funds going towards Bernie's pocket, I not at all happy. My biggest concern, however, lies in what did Perry give for the Devil's blessing.....
I would not worry about what poor govenor Perry had to "give", but what percentage commission(trying to be nice here) poor bernie (or someone) is having to pay sub rosa to the good gov. Rickie Perry for that 25m.... :dozey:

Perry has always been extremely "fiscally conservative Rick Perry" , except when it comes time for his cut of the stash...

reminds me of a song:
Perry and bernie go together like a horse and buggie.....