LMS & Le Mans to be on Eurosport in 2008

[SALEEN S7R]

Ah so Motors TV will show the races live after all? Excellent news!

[Piglet]

I guess we'll have to wait and see what comes out of all of this....maybe Motors don't know that they've lost the coverage, maybe Eurosport are jumping the gun.

I'm glad for the internet, at least these days streaming is good enough that we can get good radio coverage and streaming from lots of events.

[chocmonster7]

Hindy said that the Radio Le Mans guys are still working on a deal for LMS radio so fingers crossed that happens.

[NightStalk3r]

Originally Posted by Stranger

I quote the Motors TV April selection mail:



Must add that they will also show motocross.

Sunday 6 April, MX2 races live at 12.00, then at 15.00
Sunday 27 April, MX2 races delayed at 15.00 (1st round), then live at 16.00 (2nd round)

appears to me then that Motors TV will show live and Eurosport will show Highlights.

[Rockmunky]

Where's Martin Haven when you need him!!

[Tom908V12]

Well, anyway I have access to neither MotorsTV nor Eurosport...


Only Canal+ to my home, and they cover the 24H of Le Mans but no LMS rounds

[Bernard Bram]

Originally Posted by minimangler

Let's not panic. I think this could be good- Eurosport 2 would be ideal-

Not for Audi. They want improved coverage. ES2 is no different in terms of coverage than MotorsTV in Europe.

[JAG]

Originally Posted by Paddy_NL

If I want entertainment, I will go to Blockbusters. If I want to see a race, I don't want to see commercial breaks or other sport's highlights.

I watch sportscar racing for:-

1/ Technically interesting cars

2/ Entertainment

If either aspect is missing, the sport will fail.

We're not asking for the earth, Eurosport's World Sportscar Championship coverage was superior 15 years ago, pre race interviews, qualifying highlights, the lot, I even think Martin Haven commentated!

Without better coverage we wouldn't have Audi OR Peugeot, and would have to be content with a series that's unlikely to break out beyond a niche (even within motorsport circles), unlike the ALMS in the US.

As for the Daytona 24 hr's coverage, that was an exception, it seemed to be a late deal and toe in the water operation. Compare that to the Champ Car, Moto GP or WTCC coverage.

[ss_collins]

For me this is a dissapointment - not a disaster but I much prefer the ALMS - which I assume is live on Motors as before. I tend to miss most LMS races on TV because I'm either there - or at another track!

Motors is a brilliant channel and must be lauded for the ongoing support of the best motor racing in the world ACO Sportscars

[Justin Moran]

Originally Posted by JAG

I watch sportscar racing for:-

1/ Technically interesting cars

2/ Entertainment

If either aspect is missing, the sport will fail.

We're not asking for the earth, Eurosport's World Sportscar Championship coverage was superior 15 years ago, pre race interviews, qualifying highlights, the lot, I even think Martin Haven commentated!

Without better coverage we wouldn't have Audi OR Peugeot, and would have to be content with a series that's unlikely to break out beyond a niche (even within motorsport circles), unlike the ALMS in the US.

As for the Daytona 24 hr's coverage, that was an exception, it seemed to be a late deal and toe in the water operation. Compare that to the Champ Car, Moto GP or WTCC coverage.

Do you have shares in Eurosport?

15 years ago there was a very niche market for satellite TV let alone sportscars. There wasnt much else vying for the airwaves as regards to niche sports, in effect it was a novelty to have Sportscar racing shown on tv and as such a draw for more audience.

Move on 15yrs. More choice more channels and more niche sports vying for airplay to further their cause.

IMO Eurosport have gone downhill with their scheduling and coverage of any type of motorsport that isnt FIA, and going by the depth of feeling on this thread I feel Im not alone in my assumption. Not just us viewers in the UK but accross the rest of Europe seem to agree they aint what the sport needs.

I agree the LMS has to raise its own game as far as marketing and getting the fans through the gate, IF by broadcasting a highlights program on Eurosport does that then great. But I feel it will take more than Eurosport to do that.

I dont have the answer, if I did I would be in marketing not marshaling.

[JAG]

Originally Posted by ss_collins

Motors is a brilliant channel and must be lauded for the ongoing support of the best motor racing in the world ACO Sportscars

Is it really?

I consider it to be one of the poorest 'mainstream' stations on the whole Sky network, from a production and technical standpoint.

They show motorsport 24/7, but all of the best content is produced by Speed or the Aussie V8 guys.

Other than Le Mans, the station doesn't make the most of it's LMS, Super GT etc. rights, most likely down tolack of budget.

Everyone complains about the lack of promotion and professionalism on the LMS promotional side, then complain when Audi and Peugeot demand improvements, seemingly content with 5 hr's worth of deeply boring, amateurish, coverage on Motors TV, which must have viewers turning off in droves.

We read DSC etc. reports and hear what a thrilling race xyz was, which certainly does not come across on the TV broadcast. Speed coverage on the other hand always makes the best of the action.

If we want the LMS to jump to the next level, expecting manufactuer's, privateer's and their sponsor's to continue investing, and helping build the sport, we need coverage worthy of the series, not something that would embarress a club series!

PS, this is not about the commentators, they're fine, it's about giving them the facilities and tools to do a good job.

[SebringMG]

And Eurosport has not been that much better recently - there motorcycle coverage is brilliant - the Daytona 24 was amongst the worst coverage i have seen recently - so very much up and down.

It will all depend what coverage they give the LMS 3-4 hours live would be good enough as i have things to do on a w/e that make 6hours of watchin motor racing unlikely tbh - but any form of tape delay esp if it pushes it back into the 7-10 bracket on a sunday and i would not watch it realistically as really it cannot compare with the likes of Lost etc.....

So how Eurosport schedule the LMS will make or break it - any WTCC or motorcycling on the same day/time and it will be shunted into obscurity on Eurosport 2!!

[johntt]

Never really had any issue with Eurosport's MotoGP, Gp2, Champ Car or WTCC coverage.

Their Champ Car coverage had one of the best commentary teams ever with Shaw and Hinchliffe.

[Kai]

Okay I love Eurosport for GP2/Porsche Supercup, then again I never have to deal with their programming/scheduling, so all I really care about is good commentary. If they use the same teams as they do for MotorsTv, then well, we're not really going anywhere...

[sceptic]

The problems with the LMS coverage were mostly not of Motors' making though: The host broadcaster leaves a lot to be desired.

And it appears that the LMS is staying with Motors - Barcelona and Monza certainly aren't on Eurosport's schedules.

[Adam43]

Originally Posted by sceptic

And it appears that the LMS is staying with Motors - Barcelona and Monza certainly aren't on Eurosport's schedules.

That doesn't mean anything

[Knowlesy]

I've only just caught this thread (and thus haven't read all of it) but, if it is true that LMS and the 24 is on Eurosport only, then this is mortally cack news.

JAG, no offence, but did you work on this deal for Eurosport? I really have no idea how this is positive for the series involved at all. My thoughts on MotorsTV quite large limitations can be found elsewhere no doubt, but what it lacked in overall quality it made up for with reliability and extensive coverage. It runs to shedule and you are guaranteed a live race when it is advertised.

If Eurosport can match this I would be very surprised, unless they are planning on introducing an exclusive motorsport channel. Highly unlikely as they don't give a toss about their viewers.

Motors opened a lot of people's eyes to different motorsport disciplines and Eurosport is absolutely not the channel to inherit their material. Their ineptitude is absolutely and completely offensive. Coverage worthy of the series? Err....

Enjoyment (entertainment) of a series is part already there and part requires effort of the viewer to make the most of it. You can quite easily enjoy the coverage on Motors by supplementing it with live timing, radio etc...

Anyways, enjoy your eight hours of Le Mans coverage this year and patchy LMS coverage inserted between endless re-runs of the Ethiopian Masters Curling series (with added Eurosport news ticker no doubt!). I'm off to lie in the bath with the cold tap dripping slowly on my forehead.

[NightStalk3r]

Originally Posted by AdamAshmore

That doesn't mean anything

Barcelona IS on MotorsTV's Schedual tho, that has to mean something.

[Piglet]

Originally Posted by NightStalk3r

Barcelona IS on MotorsTV's Schedual tho, that has to mean something.

Does it? They rarely change the schedule when they change something on the day so I wouldn't bet on something weeks ahead?!

[Adam43]

Aren' tthey are more likely to change something with weeks to go than if something changes at the last minute? Anyway, I find MotorsTV's schedule reliable. Whereas I consider Europsort listings to be the one time the programme won't be on.

[ss_collins]

Motors does the best job we could expect if we want proper coverage. Eurosport cannot deliver that.

[prototype]

Any chance someone in the States could get either Motors or Eurosport? I don't get to see these races at all.

[Mal]

So much will depend on who is doing the production, and how much resource they are putting into it. Whichever channel it is on.

Motors problem has been that they are commentating from a remote studio with only DSC and other weblinks for timing and information. I doubt there is even a tape delay allowing them to see things a couple of seconds before we do. Therefore this makes it virtually impossible to 'commentate' on the race. They therefore have to just chat and react to things after they happen.

What we need is a proper coordinated production with on site commentators who have proper information to hand.

[LC2guy]

About 2 weeks ago, i sky+'d the Daytona 24hr 1 hr highlight show ( so shoot me ) as i had found the live coverage woefull. I only managed to get the time to watch it this weekend and i have 2 comments. 1. The 1hr show was actually quite good, with less breaks and plenty of action and interviews. 2. The commentator said at the end, " don't forget, you can watch the whole of the Le Mans 24 hours live on eurosport this june ". I hope Motors have LMS live, and Eurosport get the highlights.

[isynge]

It's interesting that the large part of why this supposed change has come about is raising the media profile of Le Mans and the LMS, however it's six weeks prior to the start of the season and there's still no actual clarity about what the media package is going to be.

This says to me that there's still a lack of a coherent media strategy on the part of the organisers, which if I were a privateer would complicate my life in terms of selling the overall package, and even more critically, pose challenges for marketeers in the likes of Audi and Peugeot in terms of pulling collateral together, booking TV time, etc.

In just the same way that the ACO wins plaudits for getting the entry list for the 24 hours sorted good and early, the same needs to be done for the rest of the overall package - including the extent to which it's going to be broadcast.