Who will become the new Bernie?

[Sulland]

Who stands in line to take over Bernies role when he retires?

[zako85]

Personally, I think that given the stakes involved, literally tens of hundred of millions of extra profit every year, Bernie's replacement is certainly going to be just as greedy as it gets, However, E's replacement may not be as experienced in the business of running F1 operations of dealing with the teams. Let's admit one thing. E is an expert at running the business of F1. He's been a driver, a team principal, and a manager. His replacement will not be as "qualified".

[MJW]

Personally, I think that given the stakes involved, literally tens of hundred of millions of extra profit every year, Bernie's replacement is certainly going to be just as greedy as it gets, However, E's replacement may not be as experienced in the business of running F1 operations of dealing with the teams. Let's admit one thing. E is an expert at running the business of F1. He's been a driver, a team principal, and a manager. His replacement will not be as "qualified".

Oh I dont know, check Christian Horner's profile.

[journeyman racer]

There'll never ever be, a new Bernie.

[Mark]

There'll never ever be, a new Bernie.

That's true, because he'll never die because he's actually a cyborg who'll live forever; that's the only explanation!

But yeah I don't think we'll see another character like Bernie in sole charge, it'll go to some board of directors or something.

[Starter]

That's true, because he'll never die because he's actually a cyborg who'll live forever; that's the only explanation!

But yeah I don't think we'll see another character like Bernie in sole charge, it'll go to some board of directors or something.
Kiss of death!

[schmenke]

... it'll go to some board of directors or something.

The Formula One Group would likely have to nominate a successor.

[Brown, Jon Brow]

Tamara Ecclestone

[steveaki13]

Tamara Ecclestone

This

:eek:

I hope but suspect not, that the next leader needs to get F1 back to being the pinnacle of motor sport, rather than a TV show.

I reckon it will not happen like that thoug

[pino]

Luca di Montezemolo ! :evil:

[Doc Austin]

Luca di Montezemolo ! :evil:

No doubt it will be someone controlled by Ferrari.

[The Black Knight]

No doubt it will be someone controlled by Ferrari.

It would be a disaster for F1 if Luca replaced Bernie. Given some of the atrocious decisions he has made throughout the years surely not though. Personally I feel Ferrari have way too much pull in the sport but that's another topic!

[Doc Austin]

Personally I feel Ferrari have way too much pull in the sport but that's another topic!

Almost all of the decisions the FIA has made regarding Ferrari have been mind bogglingly biased. Either that or totally stupid. Or both.

[Duncan]

I'd personally hope somebody like Ross Brawn or Christian Horner.

I actually don't think Luca would be so bad. Obviously, he has lifelong ties to Ferrari and would be constantly dogged with assumptions of bias whether it was there or not. Importantly, though, he actually gives a sh!t about the sport and not just the money. That itself would be a huge step up.

[zako85]

Almost all of the decisions the FIA has made regarding Ferrari have been mind bogglingly biased. Either that or totally stupid. Or both.

Strangely, with all its influence, Ferrari still couldn't prevent the transition to the new engine architecture, although they might have been behind the idea of killing the 4-cylinder turbo engines.

[zako85]

Bernie tainted himself with the F1 shares CVC scandal. F1 needs someone with a cleaner business record who could set a high standard of transparency and integrity. How about Flavio Briatore?

[Koz]

Yep. It'll be Flavio!

I honestly believe that he would make F1 better for the fans.

[pino]

It has to be an Italian, so Ferrari can start to win again ! :up: :p:

[Jag_Warrior]

When does Bernie Madoff get out of jail? Surely our Bernie can hang on until the other Bernie gets out.

Seriously... I'm pulling for Zak Brown. Other than the old dwarf, I can't think of anyone who understands racing and the business of racing as well as Brown.

[jens]

Yep. It'll be Flavio!

I honestly believe that he would make F1 better for the fans.

I am sure Flav loves gimmicks. But there are not many fans, who like gimmicks like double points or sprinklers. If we thought Bernie made F1 gimmicky, watch out for Flav! :p:

[Tazio]

I'd personally hope somebody like Ross Brawn or Christian Horner.

I actually don't think Luca would be so bad. Obviously, he has lifelong ties to Ferrari and would be constantly dogged with assumptions of bias whether it was there or not. Importantly, though, he actually gives a sh!t about the sport and not just the money. That itself would be a huge step up.

http://images4.fanpop.com/image/photos/23700000/Geri-geri-halliwell-23768473-333-500.jpg

Apparently Geri Halliwell has announced her betrothal to the Red Bull :angel:
Is it possible That Horner, and The Boss are actually Corsican Brothers :confused: ;)

[journeyman racer]

Geri Halliwell? You are kidding???

Just think. When the Spice Girls were taking over the world, Horner was some pedestrian amateur racer, dreaming of being an F1 star.

Well, he's finally become an F1 star!

[Doc Austin]

I think what Horner has achieved has been amazing, though you have to weigh that against having Adrian Newey, an unlimited budget, and Vettel coming into his prime. It would have been hard to fail given those two things. I've read enough of the things he has said to know he's an intelligent and level headed guy.

I am also not sure that running a successful race team equates into being a good F1 Czar. A lot of people don't like Bernie, but remember that the sport was absolutely nowhere when he took over the promotional end. The next guy will have a hard time matching that kind of growth, but success is assured because Bernie (and Max) laid a really solid foundation.

Once something gets as popular as F1, it's hard to screw it up, though they have a mess on their hands now with the finances. Whomever the next guy will be, his first priority has got to be slashing the costs of competing.

People I don't want to see running the sport are anyone previously connected to Ferrari, and surely not Flavio, simply because he's already been thrown out of the sport for life once.

My nomination would be........ Niki Lauda, simply because it is so much fun to see what he is going to say next.

[journeyman racer]

I can never take the suggestion of Flavio Briatore seriously. The guy is a POS


Whomever the next guy will be, his first priority has got to be slashing the costs of competing.

That would be almost impossible. At every level of motorsport. If there's a completion worth winning, people/organisations will throw money at it.

[Doc Austin]

I can never take the suggestion of Flavio Briatore seriously. The guy is a POS

I didn't want to actually say that, but since you did, I agree.


That would be almost impossible. At every level of motorsport. If there's a completion worth winning, people/organisations will throw money at it.

Yes, but you can make it less expensive overall. Indycars are not nearly as expensive, and that's down to a sensible (sort of) rules package. The new cars F1 introduced this year are incredibly complex, and that usually means expensive too. What did Kaltenborn say it costs to field a car? Wasn't it something like $95 million? I think the only way you could burn that much money in Indycar would be to actually burn the money.

Now there is talk of bringing back the old V8 not only because the fans supposedly liked them better, but also because they were a lot less expensive.

If I had the answers I would be running things, but I don't. I just know that when teams can't afford to race, and close their doors instead, it's usually because the costs have gotten out of control.

[Pit Talk Asia.com]

I think if CVC still own F1 when Bernie passes away, it will be their CEO or maybe they'll bring in Zac Brown from JMI.

It could also be Bernies right-hand man at FOM- Pasquale, who's been in Bernies shadow since the 1980's. But he's not as much of a cold-blooded business man.

It's all about relationships anyway. That and fierce negotiation skills is how Bernie has remained in control.

[journeyman racer]

I didn't want to actually say that, but since you did, I agree.
Deep down. Everybody agrees with me on that one.


Yes, but you can make it less expensive overall. Indycars are not nearly as expensive, and that's down to a sensible (sort of) rules package. The new cars F1 introduced this year are incredibly complex, and that usually means expensive too. What did Kaltenborn say it costs to field a car? Wasn't it something like $95 million? I think the only way you could burn that much money in Indycar would be to actually burn the money.

Now there is talk of bringing back the old V8 not only because the fans supposedly liked them better, but also because they were a lot less expensive.

If I had the answers I would be running things, but I don't. I just know that when teams can't afford to race, and close their doors instead, it's usually because the costs have gotten out of control.
I'm just saying the top teams will flog their money at something else, and gain and advantage from that. Look what's happening now with testing restrictions? They get to play with the most awesome racing video games aka simulators.

[Doc Austin]

I'm just saying the top teams will flog their money at something else, and gain and advantage from that.

About the only way you could stop the teams from overspending is to install an FIA certified accountant in every team. Even then, they would probably hide things from him. No.... they would definitely hide things from, him and probably outright lie to him.

It's easier to spend money when it costs $95 million to run a car. If you start with something more sensible it doesn't get out f control as badly. Last estimate I saw for running an Indycar was $5 million, and you could never do that with an F1 car. The engine leases alone would be way more than that. I imagine Renault used to spend that much making the engines play "God save the Queen."

I'm certainly not saying F1 should adopt Indycar rules, but I am just trying to point out it can be more much more cheaply. Of course, if you do it too cheaply, there goes your snob appeal, which I have to admit make F1 a little more interesting.


Look what's happening now with testing restrictions? They get to play with the most awesome racing video games aka simulators.

A good sim is still probably a lot cheaper than running the car. I'm also betting Ferrari can run at Fiorano any time they please, and I would not put them above denying it.

You can't really stop the teams from spending the money if that's what they want to do, but you can give them less things to spend it on. Of course, F1 is all about the ultimate of everything from technology, drivers and even who has the most expensive motorhome. If you take that away I think you will take off some of the luster.

[Bagwan]

There needs to be a real penalty for overspending , and everyone is dubious about whether the accountants could ever police it .

If you firstly took off the cap of number of power units one could use , and , at the same time , froze the amount for the supply at say , $10million a year , you could automatically diminish the returns for pumping money into it .
If , at the same time , manufacturers were forced to supply at least one other team , there would be an automatic need in place to keep at least one cutomer on the grid .

Incentives like added testing days might be used to encourage teams to take on second or third customers .


The financial model has to change , but if they did this , they might be able to see changing it as something positive , keeping essential customers healthy .

[Doc Austin]

Privateers have always been the backbone of endurance racing. It's only when the factories come in and blow them out by spending untold millions that grid sizes become a problem. Privateers would be a great thing for F1, as evidenced by the history of Rob Walker and a few others. Remember, that even Williams began as a privateer scratching to pay the phone bill.

Unfortunately I can't see anyone coming in without factory support and starting a viable team. It just costs too much money. Out of the last three teams that came into F1, how many are left? Maybe Caterham will race again and maybe not, but with them and Marussia hitting the skids it's not going to encourage any new entries.

Haas might be a different deal because he has nearly unlimited money of his own, plus a connection with Ferrari. I'm not sure you can call the Ferrari B team a privateer though.

[journeyman racer]

There needs to be a real penalty for overspending .
The only one I can think of is bankruptcy and shutting the team down.

[Bagwan]

The only one I can think of is bankruptcy and shutting the team down.

I was more thinking of the other end of the grid , but , point taken .
The business model is skewed against the new guy .

But , the manufacturers need something to keep them in check , so a diminishing return on massive investment might be what is needed to get their attention .

Seals on motors only gets us a championship sealed up by the one maker from the beginning of the season .

[Tazio]

It has been obvious that Bernie doesn't understand the long term benefit of the internet in F1. He once was an innovator, but with comments like these it is painfully obvious that Bernie doesn't understand the what this resource brings, and how much more it can be exploited to the benefit of the product! :crazy:


Asked if social media could help F1, Ecclestone was unmoved."I'm not interested in tweeting, Facebook and whatever this nonsense is," he replied."I tried to find out but in any case I'm too old-fashioned. I couldn't see any value in it. And, I don't know what the so-called 'young generation' of today really wants. What is it?He added: “How are you going to get all the fans to meet these drivers, who don't even want to meet their girlfriends?”Ecclestone was also unimpressed by the idea of attracting young fans as they do not have the disposable income required to buy the products advertised in the sport.

I don't know why people want to get to the so-called 'young generation'. Why do they want to do that? Is it to sell them something? Most of these kids haven't got any money.

"I'd rather get to the 70-year-old guy who's got plenty of cash. So, there's no point trying to reach these kids because they won't buy any of the products here and if marketers are aiming at this audience, then maybe they should advertise with Disney."
http://www.campaignasia.com/Article/392088,exclusive-f1-boss-bernie-ecclestone-on-his-billion-dollar-brand.aspx
Time to overthrow him is overdue. :dozey:

[BDunnell]

For all that gets said about Ecclestone's sharpness, I wonder whether, given time, we will come to realise that these remarks and others were part of a mental decline.

[Bagwan]

Remember , Taz , this is Bernie we're talking about here .
When he goes this far on any topic , it's to get a reaction .

And , the reaction is a distraction from the talk of redistribution of funds .

If he can keep that a little quieter , maybe he can talk some sense with the manufacturers .

It's broken , and everybody knows it .
But , talking about it in public was only useful for the time it took to see the crisis in which they sit .

He said at one point that he'd match the percentage that they gave up in a redistribution .
Now it's time to put the manufacturers together , so they can see what everyone puts in .

Last time , when there was threat of breakaway , it was better to negotiate with them all separately , especially Ferrari , who landed a sweet deal .

Now , behind closed doors , Ferrari and the others won't have to talk about being so favoured any more .


I'm confident Bernie will keep it on the road , but he's certainly not above taking it to the very edge of adhesion , to fix the mess .
I read once , that Bernie , whilst still in short pants , bought out the store local to his school of pencils , knowing he could charge a premium on them to his school mates as the sole supplier .

That's seeing revenue stream early .
That's a lifetime of seeing revenue stream .

Replacing him aint gonna be easy .

[Bagwan]

For all that gets said about Ecclestone's sharpness, I wonder whether, given time, we will come to realise that these remarks and others were part of a mental decline.

He's been saying these crazy things for years , though .

And , there have always been people asking the same question .

[Tazio]

Remember , Taz , this is Bernie we're talking about here .
When he goes this far on any topic , it's to get a reaction .

And , the reaction is a distraction from the talk of redistribution of funds .

In the same interview he talks about F1's lesser earners, and compares them to Oscar Pistorius, so I don't buy this theory!
Maybe you should check out the link mate :idea:

[BDunnell]

He's been saying these crazy things for years , though .

And , there have always been people asking the same question .

Indeed. But this doesn't mean to say that, at some point, it won't start coming true.

[Bagwan]

In the same interview he talks about F1's lesser earners, and compares them to Oscar Pistorius, so I don't buy this theory!
Maybe you should check out the link mate :idea:

Didn't even see there was a link , to be honest , but I've read it now .

So , he's talking to the big teams , in telling off those who go out of business .
That suits his agenda today .


He also says he does understand that social media should be being used , but doesn't know how .

But , words carefully chosen had you quote him on that item alone .
He keeps control of all the video .

As for the rest of it , there's lot's of F1 tweeters , websites , and bloggers to do all that typy stuff anyway , and aside from the home site , nothing of it costs him a red cent .

So , why would he bother saying anything other than something controversial , because , as he says in the article , only the bad news gets any time in the press anyway ?

[Bagwan]

Indeed. But this doesn't mean to say that, at some point, it won't start coming true.

Maybe it's wishful thinking coming into it , as I hope he's as sharp as I suspect he is until the last day he runs the series .

[Tazio]

So , why would he bother saying anything other than something controversial , because , as he says in the article , only the bad news gets any time in the press anyway ? I don't agree with that. I read the news, and the editorial comments, bad news is only one facet of what I read, so someone is publishing it. I suspect that there are a lot of others that do the same.
Sorry mate! :champion:

[Bagwan]

He's right , though , Taz .

There's a load of sites that have picked up those words , because they sound so controversial .

I don't believe for a second that Bernie doesn't know how to take advantage of the modern world .
He mentions that other devices are taking the place of TV .
He's got sites like this very one , where people yack about his sport all the time .
He's got all the teams tweeting their faces off .

All are free advertising , or revenue stream , or both .

And , he fires off an "I'm a dinosaur" quote .
He's more fox than dinosaur , bear .

[Tazio]

sorrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrry mate :champion:

[Whyzars]

I'm with Doc. Nikki Lauda is the obvious pick to me.

I'm thinking that the right person to front F1 would be a former WDC who has maintained a profile within the sport.

The list would not be that long and the drivers/sport would be their focus.

Everything that isn't about the car is admin and that can be done by monkeys in suits.

[journeyman racer]

I was more thinking of the other end of the grid , but , point taken .
The business model is skewed against the new guy .

But , the manufacturers need something to keep them in check , so a diminishing return on massive investment might be what is needed to get their attention .

Seals on motors only gets us a championship sealed up by the one maker from the beginning of the season .
There's two ways you can look at F1. 1) In isolation to the rest of motorsport, and 2) as a part of the whole motorsport world.

If you look at it from 1) then it's easy. You can place as many rules as you like to create a result.

But if you look at it from 2), which is what it is. Then you'd have to accept that it's the designated leading motorsport competition, and you can't have restrictions that'll work. You can't put ceiling to cover the sky. You have to let teams spend all the money they want to. If you don't like it, go somewhere else.

This is where, the longer I've been interested in motorsport, the more impressed I'm am with Volkswagen Group. Between Le Mans and the WRC. They have all their credibility and promotion covered, spending a fraction of what manufacturers in F1 do. The "brand" even trade off on F1 media, talking them up, wanting them to enter F1. Never mind all the Touring car stuff they did before that (Audi were the best overall in TC).

Geniuses.

[Bagwan]

Wouldn't taking off the seals allow for them to spend their faces off , but , at them same time , if customers were mandated , allow for the customers to be able to compete ?

It's doesn't fix a cap , and guarantees more support from the front of the grid for the back of the grid .

Perhaps Caterham , if they survive , could be the second Honda on the grid .

[BDunnell]

Without a cost cap, I believe the sport is increasingly doomed. Sadly, a cost cap would be completely unworkable and unenforceable. The truth is that no-one, least of all the set-in-his-ways Ecclestone and the non-motorsport people who own F1, knows how best to respond.

[journeyman racer]

I'm saying the problem is not the cost. It's their money. But there are clearly too many regulations restricting movement. Allowing for some details I'm not aware of, it these constricting regs which contribute to the cost. Everybody has to do everything, and everything has to be the same.

Was it necessary to have everyone use these current turbos? Renault debuted their turbo in the 77 British GP, but it wasn't til the 84 Austrian GP that the whole field used turbos. Nobody thought of a phasing in period? Even if the turbos were performance deficient, you could make allowances. But no, everybody wants a parity class.

You can't make the big teams spend less. You have to find ways to make it reasonable to participate.

[Tazio]

And , he fires off an "I'm a dinosaur" quote .
He's more fox than dinosaur , bear .

His schtick has gotten realllllllllllly old, and retarded. Enough so for McLaren to feel compelled to refute this idiotic comment..... squirrel.
http://autoweek.com/article/formula-one/mclaren-has-perfect-response-bernie-ecclestones-comments-young-f1-fans

[Bagwan]

His schtick has gotten realllllllllllly old, and retarded. Enough so for McLaren to feel compelled to refute this idiotic comment..... squirrel.
http://autoweek.com/article/formula-one/mclaren-has-perfect-response-bernie-ecclestones-comments-young-f1-fans

Ah , my favourite fuzzy forest dwelling friend , Mac made the perfect response to Bernie's "We don't need them" with a "Yes we do" .

He just showed you that he does , indeed , know how to make the intertwitterweb work .

Wander out of that forest , bear , so you can see the trees .

[Tazio]

Right dufus like the teams aren't going to put out regular tweets whether or not BE vomits out these retarded comments.
Wander back up your butthole.

[Bagwan]

Right dufus like the teams aren't going to put out regular tweets whether or not BE vomits out these retarded comments.
Wander back up your butthole.

There's a shell game going on up yours and you haven't even noticed .

[BDunnell]

I thought English was meant to be the forum's first language?

[Doc Austin]

Some of you guys sure are obsessed with buttholes.

Just sayin'......

Which reminds me of Niki Lauda. He had skin grafts on his face, and the tissue was taken from his buttocks. When asked why he did not get cosmetic surgery to fix his face, Lauda replied "You can't be too proud when you wear you ass on your face."

[Tazio]

http://www.carthrottle.com/the-funniest-twitter-reactions-to-bernie-ecclestones-recent-rant/

Soon to be seen on the F1 grid: :p:



https://pbs.twimg.com/media/B2cRzBYIUAILFLT.jpg

[jens]

Without a cost cap, I believe the sport is increasingly doomed. Sadly, a cost cap would be completely unworkable and unenforceable. The truth is that no-one, least of all the set-in-his-ways Ecclestone and the non-motorsport people who own F1, knows how best to respond.

Well, could be true. But then... it looks like F1 is doomed anyway! Since no scenario works. And somewhere we were discussing the world is going green and young people lose interest in cars and subsequently racing.

Never mind, if F1 is doomed anyway, at least it has a choice of choosing the way how to do it. I prefer a big bang rather than a slow painful death.:p:

[jens]

Thinking about it, I would not be against Christian Horner being the "next Bernie".

He is pretty young, energetic, successful, also former racing driver, and political enough to the extent that many people dislike him. Perfect qualifications for the job!

In contrast I can't see the likes of Ross Brawn, Lauda, and whoever else has been proposed, being interested in being an F1 Leader. And perhaps it doesn't fit their personality/character very well either. Brawn is more into technical side of things, even if he has been a very good team principal.

Flavio - no, thanks. He is a proven criminal. And secondly the next Bernie needs to be more youthful with new energy and new ideas. Horner fits the bill well, Flavio is part of the old guard, who is now about to exit the stage anyway.

[Firstgear]

This is a business first and a sport second. Therefore, it won't be a former racer or race team owner. It'll be some lawyer most of us has never heard of before.

It's the only way we can be united in our hatred.:p

[Tazio]

LONDON, England - A source has reinforced reports that Bernie Ecclestone could be "reined in" by a new Formula 1 chairman.

The Financial Times reported that F1 CEO Ecclestone's long reign is under threat by former Diageo, an alcoholic drinks company, chief Paul Walsh, who is being lined-up to take over from current chairman Peter Brabeck.

A source close to Walsh told Management Today: "Paul has been courted for nine months now."

THREAT TO ECCLESTONE?

The Times had claimed CVC chief Donald Mackenzie was behind the impending change because he wanted "a more professional approach" to running F1.
The source close to Walsh confirmed: "Paul would want to rein in (Ecclestone) to some extent from a good governance point of view" and would get "short-tempered" if the 84-year-old didn't change his ways "within a few months".

I've always considered Bernie an ass-clown (not that he hasn't done some very good things for F1, and that he is a very shrewd businessman Baggie) He says way too much dumb $h!+ publicly for effect, that I personally believe a sport with the stature of F1 does not need. I know ya' 'awl boys from the UK are into your tabloid bs and tbh it has become more and more, to my disgust in vogue in the good ol' U.S.A.

For instance; you would never hear the commissioner of major league baseball say publicly something like:
Yeah the pub MLB got from Roberto Clemente dying is actually good.
In 2009 Ass-clown did say:

"the publicity generated by his death was so much...It was good for F1." Senna!