American in Formula One

[Snrub]

JPM had troubles getting to grips with F1? There was some curve, but why is it that he passed MS for the lead in his 3rd ever GP? JPM raced at Indy once, he was apart of CART not the IRL. I'll admit I've expected JPM to do more in F1 than he has, but that has no baring on his time in CART.

[GP Racer]

Originally posted by D-bass
Independent study

Fifty American drivers have participated in the Formula One World Championship (excluding the Indianapolis 500), beginning with Harry Schell at Monaco in 1950. Eddie Cheever made the most appearances (143) and also drove for the most teams (9).
http://home.cinci.rr.com/usgp/history/am_presence.html

With the Formula One tour revisiting the US you might have expected visitors to the Indianapolis circuit to be curious motorsports fans, with no particular allegiance to Formula One. If you did, you would have been wrong. Despite a ten-year absence, America’s passion toward Formula One remains undiminished. An independent study* conducted by Performance Research suggests that real US Formula One fans exist.

In fact when the respondents were asked to rate their interest in Formula One on a scale of one to ten where ten is high, three-fourths (75%) gave Formula One either a ‘9’ or ‘10’ rating. So how did this compare to other established US motorsports? Well, roughly one-fourth (24%) awarded CART, a ‘9’ or ‘10’ rating, and fewer than one-fifth (15%) awarded NASCAR a ‘9’ or ‘10’ rating, indicating there is a unique Formula One audience in the US and not just a bi-product of interest in other US
Motorsports.

Moreover, almost all (91%) of the respondents reported watching Formula One on television during the past month, in contrast fewer than two-thirds (62%) reported watching CART. When respondents were asked to choose the statement which best described themselves, just over one-half (53%) chose the statement "I am a diehard Formula One fan and will attend as many races as I can. The remaining respondents expressed interest in other US motorsports.

With a US Formula One fan base clearly in place, how would the other big race pan out? The other race is of course,

the battle of the sponsors.
During unaided awareness questioning, the most frequently mentioned sponsor was SAP (58%), followed by Marlboro (46%) and Mercedes (33%). When respondents were asked to identify sponsors from a list aided recall was high, with almost all (96%) of the respondents correctly identifying Mercedes, Jaguar (94%), Yahoo! (91%) and SAP (86%).

Further good news for SAP was the finding that over two-thirds (68%) of respondents correctly attributed them as the primary sponsor of the US Grand Prix.
The good news didn’t just stop at sponsor awareness. Almost two-thirds (63%) of fans believed Formula One sponsors have more interest in their customers than non-sponsors. Over one-half of US Formula One fans reported that they personally benefit from corporate sponsorship of Formula One. Just over one-third believed that sponsorship "Makes the race possible".

Finally, when questioned about loyalty to sponsors products, over one-half of the respondents reported they would "Frequently" or "Almost always" preferentially choose a sponsors product, compared to a non-sponsors product. Not bad considering that ten-year absence!
Editorial Information

Hmmm, it seems as though us American race fans and drivers aren't as unsophisticated as freud would have you believe.

Thank goodness for this study, I was beginning to think freud might be right...

Hey JohnSSC, way to go brother!

[RapidTron]

wow 26 posts into this thread and still no anti-american comment from a prost loving american journo yet?

[JohnSSC]

That individual is plying their trade at LeMans, I believe.

Thanks GP Racer! As a card-carrying member of the "Great Unwashed" I simply couldn't resist that one!

By the way, some of the best racing I have ever seen anywhere has been on dirt tracks. Sprint Cars Rule!

[jklein6419]

somebody mentioned scott speed, i followed him in america and he has dominated in everything he has done i say him or aj allmindinger have the best chances. they are young and willing to put in 110% i believe

[Homer Simpson]

Originally posted by Tazio
From memory the year Micheal raced in F1 there was a large reduction in the amount of testing that a team could do.
This would have contributed to him having a tough first year

Not to mention that Andretti had to deal with Ayrton Senna as a teammate; I really doubt anyone would have fared well in their rookie year having someone as talented and competitive as Senna as their main psychological and race rival (especially considering that there is so much to learn stepping into F1).

[Kicking-back]

Andretti could've helped himself by living in Europe, though.

[GP Racer]

There have been a number of decent American drivers who did all the right things to get into F1, but for whatever reason didn't get a chance.

I just hope they weren't denied because of attitudes like freuds. If that attitude really exists, than we may never see an American in F1 again...

[freud]

Originally posted by BootsOntheSide
Freud, goign to F3000 might not make any difference. Tehre are currently 3 F3000 champins in CART (Junquiera, Bourdais and Wilson) and only 2 in F1 (Heidfeld and Panis (and that was before the current one-make rules were added)). Even last year's dominant champion Bjorn Wirdheim only got a testing deal.

The other factor is that guys who aren't used to Europe but appear promising often struggle in F3000 - Craig Lowndes, Ryan Briscoe and Cristiano da Matta are good examples - and failure in F3000 often severely sets back a career (at one point Mario haberfeld was the Next Big Thing - this year he didn't get a CART drive until a month before the start of the season despite a moderately encouraging rookie year)

Well, theoretically you are right though again the drivers you mention, I wouldnt count among the real 'talent'. If an american driver is talented enough to do well at f3000, he would be great f1 candidate. I think what red bull is doing (search for the next american f1 champ) is BS. Simply becuase you cannot just interview and test 100 guys and pick one and make him the 'next american f1 champ'. Its illogical.

Another option for hunter-reay (or any other potential merican driver) would be to get a testing position at a top team. One year as a test-driver would help him understand the engineering, the cars and the atmosphere.

Finally, dare I say it, I am kind of against 'affirmitive action' in the world of f1. No one should try to put an american f1 driver into the grid just for the fact that they dont exist in the f1 world or because of the sponsors... I mean if an american driver is good enough he should make it by his own merit. He must test-drive the car, do some driving in european formulae and prove that he is good enough for the job. Again, that is only my opinion.

[Gt_R]

F1 drivers should be here on merit, not here because they have money, or because he's here because F1 needs a driver from Country X.

If it means 20 drivers from Europe, because the 20 are the best, then so be it. F1 doesn't neccessary need a representative from each country just for the sake of it. LOok at Alex Yoong? F1 doesn't have a malaysian driver so what the government do is to find the best malaysian driver, give him the cash, and let him come to europe...and gets blown away. The same applies to every country.

If one American driver finds himself good enough for F1, then welcome aboard..if not..stay out.


But it's worth sparing a thought that there are so many racing talents out there who is potentially great for F1, but just didn't have a chance because their country doesn't have a culture for racing, not rich enough to develope, doesn't have the infrastructure to nurture young talents, etc etc...

[jj2728]

Originally posted by Gt_R

If one American driver finds himself good enough for F1, then welcome aboard..if not..stay out.

WRONG...you should have said "if one american driver finds himself with ENOUGH CASH for f1, then welcome aboard...if not...stay out..."

it's a sad state of affairs, but unfortunately true....i just hope that rhr gets a chance to prove himself and that if someone with enough cash comes along to sweeten the pot the fine by me because i think he does merit a spot on the f1 grid....more so than a few of the current drivers.....and there have been a few fine american drivers who more than held their own on grand prix grids, phil hill, mario andretti, dan gurney....

[Fiorentina 1]

I think RHR is the best hope for an American in F1. Scott Speed in a few years after F3000, then Colin Fleming. A couple young guys like Billy Johnson and Andrew Alfonso are good also, but they need to move to Europe first.

[Armco Bender]

Often is forgotten, that American driver was a F1 World Champion way before any French or German driver.

Dont forget though the year he won the German who was leading the championship was killed before the end of the season.

[BootsOntheSide]

Not meaning to nit-pick jj, but I think you've msised off the greatest American-born driver of them all - Richie Ginther. His development skill coupled with great racecraft, consistancy and speed make him a bette talent than Hill in my view - other than maybe Amon and Alesi, no one else with 1 or less wins is in the same league.

[Dani Filth]

there's a good chance for the an american to shine . just pay Jordan for Indy race

[jj2728]

Originally posted by BootsOntheSide
Not meaning to nit-pick jj, but I think you've msised off the greatest American-born driver of them all - Richie Ginther. His development skill coupled with great racecraft, consistancy and speed make him a bette talent than Hill in my view - other than maybe Amon and Alesi, no one else with 1 or less wins is in the same league.

absolutely agree boots....ginther brought honda their first ever f1 win at mexico in 1965...he is an oft overlooked talent...

[gttouring]

after giving it some thought,
who cares. it is no big deal who is in formula one- it is the manufacturer playground today. and i would rather it simply be the top notch guys than a yank, an aussie, a brit, a chinese, japanese, Afrikaaner, it doesn't matter as long as they are good interviews and fun to watch racing.
like Button, and Sato are, and Kimi is and his "silence is more answers" let the colorful skillful go to the fore and if he or she be USamerican vs. Candian Northamerican so be it, it may make a country happy but there is so much more in this world. let's get good blokes in the seats and watch

[mueber]

The road racing options in America are semi-pro these days, so I think we are going to see more American drivers interested in F-1 in the future. The problem is that Americans are not interested in F-1 so it is financially difficult for a young American to come to Europe because they don’t have sponsors.

If an American makes it, Americans will take note, but not until.

[Rennen]

Originally posted by Gt_R
F1 drivers should be here on merit, not here because they have money, or because he's here because F1 needs a driver from Country X.

If it means 20 drivers from Europe, because the 20 are the best, then so be it. F1 doesn't neccessary need a representative from each country just for the sake of it. LOok at Alex Yoong? F1 doesn't have a malaysian driver so what the government do is to find the best malaysian driver, give him the cash, and let him come to europe...and gets blown away. The same applies to every country.

If one American driver finds himself good enough for F1, then welcome aboard..if not..stay out.


But it's worth sparing a thought that there are so many racing talents out there who is potentially great for F1, but just didn't have a chance because their country doesn't have a culture for racing, not rich enough to develope, doesn't have the infrastructure to nurture young talents, etc etc...

Well said Gt_R!

[GP Racer]

Originally posted by mueber
The road racing options in America are semi-pro these days, so I think we are going to see more American drivers interested in F-1 in the future. The problem is that Americans are not interested in F-1 so it is financially difficult for a young American to come to Europe because they don’t have sponsors.

If an American makes it, Americans will take note, but not until.

I think your wrong about Americans not being interested in F1.

Read the "Independent Report" that D-Bass posted on page 1 of this thread. It clearly shows that Americans are indeed interested in F1, and that they are knowledgable about the series. Also, the USGP is one of the best attended GP's of the season.

Last year, I went to the USGP for the first time, because I happened to talk to a couple of friends about my interest in F1, and I found out that they were also interested. This year, we're going with 8 guys. Simply through bringing F1 into a conversation, we found a bunch of guys who are fans that we never knew were. I think F1 fans in america, are somewhat "in the closet", and don't talk to much about it, because of the NASCAR phenomenon.

That said, the right American driver in F1, could really boost the sport here.

[JohnSSC]

Well boy and howdy! Here I wuz scratchin at m'self tryin to figger out the particoolurs of gettin' a "merrican into one them little toy furrin cars without no fenders cuverin the wheels.

The more my cousin Maybelle reads of these here posts to me, the easier it is fer me to understand!

From what yinz guyz are sayin, ome one from the States has toe earn their way into F1 by bein just like all them other more desrvin' Uropeens! There must be like an Academy or sumptin that teaches you how to act like a Uropeen so no one suspects you ain't from the clique that decides if you are "right" for the job.

You either can drive or you can't. Just like it is drivel that a driver from Europe can't succeed on ovals here (they can and do) it is drivel that an American can't succeed ther because he doesn't "understand the environment" or "doesn't know the tracks." Heck, you can't tell me that there aren't about skatey-eight drivers out ther, of any nationality who aren't better than Dolt, Bruni, Pantano, Klein and whoever is in the revolving door seat at Jordan, so the rubbish about the best driver getting the seat is just that: rubbish.

Further, there has been a bias against American drivers in F1. I do wish our feeder system were stronger here so that the best drivers would go to F1 rather than going to NASCAR to make millions - but why fight the bs?

[Kicking-back]

I can't see any bias against American drivers in F1.

Most teams would love to have a successful US driver on board - it would bring commercial benefits in what is still for Grand Prix racing a largely untapped region.

[gttouring]

and talent is not all there is in F1 anymore
there now is a required polish and Media saavy that driving alone won't bring
hence David Couthard and his long run- the Darling in F1
a certain technical astutness as well, found in heaps in MS-
if it was all talent (and money one might bring) it would be a different scene altogther.
but it is complex to be an F1 pilot nowadays...real talent shines in sportcars and touring cars anyway

[Panzer]

I would like to see an American driver in F1, I would also like to see an American Team in F1. I think it would be good for the sport.

[Attila]

Well I do not doubt that American drivers have the neccessary skills to get to F1. ON the other hand most of the current F1 drivers started their racing carriers when they were 5-8 years old. That is probably the same with most better American driver, but how many 6-8 year old gokart drivers were in the US 15 years ago and how many were in whole Europe. I think that is what makes the difference.

I lived in the States for 8 years, and have never seen a paycart track whilst there. Now I live in Budapest which is not exactly the center of motorsports, but there are at leats 30 paytracks. Maybe the American people get interested in F1, but for sure were not as interested as Europeans when I lived there.

I am sure that the current situation is going to change. American drivers and kids who will be drivers are not genetically different than Europeans, so the all they need is hard work, practice, and money. It is only a matter of time before we will see an American WDC.

One more question, where did you guys get that marketing reaserch about F1 in the US. I am only interested because we did a 6 country reasarch in Europe in 2001 that is very similar. I thought that we are the only one who were interested in this field, we also sold a research to most F1 teamst at that time.

Anyway; cheers