Speed Channel USGP Coverage

Kirk · 21 Jun 2005, 19:38 (Ref:1336350)

The USGP race week coverage by Speed Channel was nothing short of outstanding and deserves mention. They did 4 consecutive hours on Friday covering the 2 practice sessions and had extra commentators in as well, including Derek Daly. Some great insightful bits, including interviews was fun to watch. It's a shame that the Michelin fiasco on raceday overshadowed all that extra coverage. Just as Speed Channel seemed to be giving F1 some much needed air time in America, this happens. It may take some time to recover now.

Tony Clifton · 21 Jun 2005, 20:14 (Ref:1336382)

I have watched the Tivo recording I made. Really great coverage and commentary.

I think F1 in the US has been killed. People will watch it on TV, but the USGP has one more year and then it is all over.

Unless a mircle occurs, which could happen.

Wait until F1 splits up between the current F1 and the future Grand Prix Racing Association. If you thought the CART/IRL spilt killed US open wheel racing wait until that split kills the European open wheel racing.

This weekends fiasco is a huge first step toward an eventual F1 split.

GP Racer · 21 Jun 2005, 20:26 (Ref:1336396)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tony Clifton

I have watched the Tivo recording I made. Really great coverage and commentary.

I think F1 in the US has been killed. People will watch it on TV, but the USGP has one more year and then it is all over.

Unless a mircle occurs, which could happen.

Wait until F1 splits up between the current F1 and the future Grand Prix Racing Association. If you thought the CART/IRL spilt killed US open wheel racing wait until that split kills the European open wheel racing.

This weekends fiasco is a huge first step toward an eventual F1 split.

Great post Tony.

As a fan that was there to, I felt the anger all around me, and nobody I spoke to said they would renew.

As for Speed coverage, it really is the best. Hobbs, Matchett, Windsor and Varsha, are the best. I will miss getting up at 6AM to watch the race with them...

LampCord · 22 Jun 2005, 18:32 (Ref:1337521)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tony Clifton

Wait until F1 splits up between the current F1 and the future Grand Prix Racing Association. If you thought the CART/IRL spilt killed US open wheel racing wait until that split kills the European open wheel racing.

That would just be a nightmare. What happens if the best drivers / teams go to GPRA? Then F1 loses all legitimacy. Any races won, any records now become meaningless. Shumacher, Senna, Prost. Everything they did becomes meaningless.

It would almost be like half the world's soccer teams splitting off and having their own World Cup!

The end of the world as we know it...

Inigo Montoya · 21 Jun 2005, 20:34 (Ref:1336406)

I have to disagree. One of those commentators was insisting that Schumacher should get disqualified because he almost touched Rubens on the way out of the pits. Windsor obviously knows his stuff, but the other guys are clueless.

enemy-ace · 21 Jun 2005, 21:30 (Ref:1336504)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Inigo Montoya

Windsor obviously knows his stuff, but the other guys are clueless.

Couldn't disagree more. Steve Matchett has a wealth of technical info and has more to offer than anything the ITV crew does. Hobbs is a bit of a goof but Varsha is a good lead man.
I'll admit Derek Daly is a bit of a nonsensical yapper but he was only there because of the added coverage. He's not a regular.
SPEED's coverage is terrific!

chillibowl · 21 Jun 2005, 21:18 (Ref:1336475)

but that was more because of outrage and everyone was feeling it. but thats a minor thing on what has been the most comprehensive tv coverage i have ever seen of a F1 weekend on a N.Amerian station.
it was excellent and i hope Speed channel don't scale back their coverage of other races because of this, but unfortunatly in the US they get much better ratings showing nascar and the supporting series so who knows.
in fact i sent them a email and if you haven't already send them one too.
http://www.speedtv.com/feedback/

Inigo Montoya · 21 Jun 2005, 21:33 (Ref:1336510)

Sorry, you are right. Matchett is alright too. But Dalley and Hobbs should go.
I seem to remember more comprehensive coverage last year, when they went behind the scenes at Ferrari. That was very cool, and I remember posting on here about how good it was...

Tone · 21 Jun 2005, 23:12 (Ref:1336585)

Quote:

The TV guys (SpeedTV on Sunday. David Hobbs, Bob Varsha and Steve Matchett) were saying that Ferrari is using illegal heating devices that are not the tyre blankets . They said that Ferrari have some kind of heating boxes where they maintain the tyres, that way they get heat into the rims too. To cheat the rules, Ferrari keeps the tyre blankets on, so they can say that is really the blanket that is heating the tyre

That's their solution to the qually problems

Did the speed commentators say this, just read it on another forum..

Inigo Montoya · 21 Jun 2005, 23:32 (Ref:1336599)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tone

Did the speed commentators say this, just read it on another forum..

They did mention the tyre ovens, but they said that, though they caused a stir in pitlane, they are in fact legal.

Not Rated · 21 Jun 2005, 23:16 (Ref:1336588)

They did. Don't know how much truth there is to it though.

TedN · 21 Jun 2005, 23:29 (Ref:1336595)

I agree with the great coverage from SPEED TV. I thought the piece by Machette on the BAR backpack tire air pressure device was really neat.

Although the race itself was a shambles, it sure made for compelling TV. Both Daly and Windsor running around on the grid trying to find out what was going on. They then had plenty of interviews after the Michelin teams had parked. The guys in the booth didn't hold back either.

With 17.5 hours coverage of Le Mans plus the USGP, SPEED TV did a superb job!

Ted

Tone · 21 Jun 2005, 23:40 (Ref:1336610)

Quote:

f) The only permitted type of tyre heating devices are blankets which use resistive heating elements.

http://www.formula1.com/insight/rulesandregs/13/511.html

They would be illegal, seems a pretty bold statement to make..

eatapc · 22 Jun 2005, 00:21 (Ref:1336628)

The ovens are not a secret. I believe what the announcers said was that the ovens have been determined to be legal, which is simply a factual statement. There may have been a "nudge-nudge-wink-wink" tone in the report, but they were simply reporting the facts.

JeremySmith · 22 Jun 2005, 01:47 (Ref:1336660)

I think they do a fantastic job at Speed TV and seem to know what they are talking about, don't they!

senna12 · 22 Jun 2005, 02:22 (Ref:1336679)

Luckily, we in English Canada can pick up either the ITV feed through TSN, or Speed. I must say, I prefer the Speed coverage, it is usually what ends up being taped. Vic Rauter (TSN host) just doesn't do it for me.

Anyway, they showed these "boxes". If the box heats the rim, it should follow that it would be heating the tire attached to it. And probably the air inside it as well. Wouldn't it?

I guess not, if these "boxes" have been deemed legal.

LongJohnSilver · 22 Jun 2005, 02:37 (Ref:1336685)

Speed will also get better with the addition of GP2 coverage, announced just this weekend. Varsha mentioned it at the Thursday press conference, and there was a commercial during the race.

They will be showing the Sunday morning races starting in France. 6am EST I believe.

KaiserSose · 22 Jun 2005, 04:10 (Ref:1336741)

Quote:

Varsha is a good lead man.

Oh. no.

Sorry......but if Varsha pronounces extraordinary as "ex-trah-dinary" instead of "ex-trordinary" again, which he undoubtedly will, I'm going to lose it.

Hobbs is hilarious. He's always good for clowning on some driver, or some team. Didn't he come up with Andrea DeCrasharis? And "Fred" Alonso......

Speed's coverage was great.

You want to save the USGP? Move it to Vegas. That way if FIA wants to job the fans out of watching a race, there's other stuff to keep you busy. But Indianapolis? Yawwwn.

Maxmil · 22 Jun 2005, 11:18 (Ref:1337013)

I believe Speed did a very good job on the U.S. GP up until the point where the Michelin Seven parked their cars. After that, no one in the world could have made anything of the event. Coming on top of their fine job with Le Mans, it was a super weekend of motorsport.

fazzaz · 23 Jun 2005, 00:08 (Ref:1337817)

I've heard that Scott Speed and/or his management seem to have no inclination to cooperate with television at all. Dumb, dumb....

The Ferrari cabinets are legal because they contain no heating elements; they simply retain the heat of the tire warmers rather than releasing it into the air. Actually pretty clever. (This has been discussed in some detail on various technical forums on the Internet.)

In my opinion Varsha, Hobbs and Matchett are a great team; each brings something different to the broadcast, and this is a case where the whole is greater than the parts. Daly's on-air personality seriously detracts from the broadcast.

djb · 23 Jun 2005, 03:04 (Ref:1337889)

Quote:

Originally Posted by fazzaz

In my opinion Varsha, Hobbs and Matchett are a great team; each brings something different to the broadcast, and this is a case where the whole is greater than the parts. Daly's on-air personality seriously detracts from the broadcast.

This is a very good assessment of the three of them. As i have mentioned, i don't hear them all that often, but from years of listening to Varsha and Hobbs covering other events, your "sum greater than the parts" is a good evaluation. Daly has, for me anyway, a way of talking that is often too far over to the slick salesman side of things, not geniune and too much seemingly false hyberbole. The guy has similiar experience racing as Hobbs, albeit 10-15 years down the road, but as you say, his on-air personality is not as genuine.
I recall Hobbs from his beginnings on Speedvision, he wasn't as relaxed infront of the camera, but there was always a genuinism there which along with a sober outlook that you knew came from racing during very dangerous years, that made me like him as a presenter. I was in an Audi tent at last years lemans, and if he had not been in discussion with other people , i would have liked to say hello and tell him how well his Speedvision prescence has been positive for motorsport appreciation and motorsport history.

djb · 22 Jun 2005, 02:40 (Ref:1336690)

as with all things that must be be approved for use by the FIA beforehand, these must be legal, such as an engine cooling fan, water cooled brakes, a second clutch or brake pedal, you know, that sort of thing.......

back on topic, I'm kinda fond of Hobbs, Daly can get on my nerves (especially when they do that "double-D" college fraternity house nickname thing, grow up will ya) and I too appreciate Matchett(sp)'s tech background. don't usually see speed coverage of F1, but get lots of other stuff taped from a friend.

mind you, you gotta wince with all those cleavagey Hooters ads, wouldn't want to be watching Speed with my kids for that, the Harley and tuning babes too. Just plain bad imagery of women.

Dutton · 22 Jun 2005, 08:07 (Ref:1336852)

The number of ad-breaks with Speed is what annoys me....especially when they go into one their little runs off 2 minutes of programme followed by three minutes of adverts.

I just hope TSN are back for race coverage at the next race.

speedbump · 22 Jun 2005, 12:11 (Ref:1337065)

I enjoy the SPEED coverage slightly better than TSN.
I usualy flip back and forth when commercials pop up.
That way you don't miss any racing or pit stops.

Dutton · 23 Jun 2005, 06:23 (Ref:1337950)

Quote:

Originally Posted by speedbump

I enjoy the SPEED coverage slightly better than TSN.
I usualy flip back and forth when commercials pop up.
That way you don't miss any racing or pit stops.

Likewise, it means only about 5 minutes of the race is missed in the end.

The problem with Speed is that you only get to see about 65 minutes of the race, whereas with TSN (if it is the sole boradcaster, which happens sometimes) you get about 75. I also like hearing Martin Brundle (when TSN use him and James). Thus, when both are running, TSN is my foundation race coverage. Gerald Donaldson can be reasonably interesting at times too.

Don't get me wrong, I jappily take Speed and their silly ad-breaks over no race any day!

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