Mar
11
Max Davies on Motorsport
It’s been a busy few weeks since my last blog on here. A few weeks ago, I received an invitation to attend the McLaren Technology Centre and to have lunch with Jonathan Neale – Managing Director of McLaren Racing, and as I mentioned in my weekly column on motorsport.com, it was an enjoyable day.
http://www.motorsport.com/news/article.asp?ID=401217&FS=F1
Two weeks ago, it was Mario Andretti’s 71st birthday and what better way for the racing legend to celebrate it than by answering my questions via telephone for 45 minutes! We discussed several IndyCar issues and his thoughts on the forthcoming F1 season, proposed F1 rules for 2013 and how grand prix racing should be beating a path to the door of his grandson Marco.
Mario answered my first question about whether he was tempted to enter the recently announced IndyCar end of season race where there is $5m on offer to any non-IndyCar driver who can win it:
“You never know,” the 71-year old told me. “Paul Newman was similar age when he competed in Le Mans and he was 80 when he raced at Daytona in the 24 hour race in 2005. I am tempted, of course and I’m certainly crazy enough. I still love the sport but I have to be realistic and say that it might be too much but who knows…”
With his son, 1991 CART champion Michael now running his own team, Mario was confident that getting a car together for the two of them to race grandson Marco who drives for the Andretti Autosport outfit, around the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, would not prove too difficult an obstacle to overcome.
“He (Michael) has the team so if he is interested in doing it, I think he could come up with another car and lets face it, it sure would be interesting. This is of course the last race with the current chassis and engines so it would be very cheap for any would-be-entrant to get the pieces together and make up a team to challenge for the $5m pot. I think it’s going to be incredible and I think we will definitely see some good talent there.”
So there remains the possibility of there being three generations of Andretti lining up on the grid in October and while it would be a concern watching Mario get behind the wheel, I suspect I am not alone in hoping that he does race. He is, after all, a legend in his own right.
For years, Mario – who won the event but once in 1969, would be leading the Indianapolis 500 and looking set to add to the tally when the dreaded words would be uttered by the speedway’s late announcer Tom Carnegie:
“And Andretti’s slowing down…”
Slowing down? Not a bit of it!
Nisan subsidiary Infiniti have announced their involvement in Formula One via a branding deal with Red Bull which will see their name appear on the RB7 in prominent positions yet for me, there was more interesting news that was announced yesterday – that the Mercedes GP team had been wholly bought by Daimler AG and financial partner Aabar Investments PJS.
It now means that Mercedes is now, officially a manufacturer entrant and I for one applaud it. Usually, news of a car maker entering the sport would fill me with dread as I struggled to contain my anger at the massive investments required to go racing which I believe were generated courtesy of brands like Toyota, Honda and BMW.
Mercedes have always been different in my opinion. Since they re-entered Formula One under the guise of Ilmor Engineering with Peter Sauber in 1993, their commitment to the sport has been admirable. They have achieved a lot and much like Ferrari, they have always been enthusiasts of racing. Sure, they are there to market their brand too but with Mercedes, somehow, you never doubted their desire, their passion, for Formula 1.
In the face of the world-wide economic crisis, there were rumours that they too would depart the sport but thankfully they held through, keen to maintain awareness of their name while the competition got scared and disappeared. ‘Win on Sunday, sell on Monday’ is the renowned saying when it comes to motor racing. Trouble is, if you are constantly not winning on a Sunday, despite spending millions of pounds to do so, the carmakers are going to cut their losses and cut that expense a la Toyota, Honda and BMW all of whom are now gone.
Unless you are Mercedes…
The announcement yesterday had been expected ever since Mercedes-Benz bought out Ross Brawn’s outfit at the end of 2009. the new shareholding structure within the concern will see Daimler owning 60% with Aabar Investments owning the remaining 40%.
The Mercedes GP Formula 1 team is now wholly owned by the car manufacturer’s parent company Daimler AG and financial partner Aabar Investments PJS, after the two companies bought out the other shareholders in the Brackley-based operation.
In a move that had been widely expected ever since Mercedes-Benz took over the then Brawn GP outfit, Daimler and Aabar have purchased the remaining 24.9 per cent of the outfit that was owned by team management including Ross Brawn and Nick Fry.
The new shareholding structure of the team has resulted in Daimler owning 60 per cent, with Aabar owning the remaining 40 per cent.
CEO of Daimler AG, Dr Dieter Zetsche declared the move was a logical commitment and signified the companies’ intent for the future.
“The acquisition of a majority stake holding in our Silver Arrows team sends a clear signal that we intend to achieve technical and sporting success on world motorsport’s biggest and most important stage – and to do so in cost-effective conditions,” he said.
In the wake of Honda’s withdrawal from F1 at the end of 2008, Brawn saved the team and declared that the announcement would be a positive for the sport.
“Daimler and Aabar’s acquisition of the remaining 24.9 per cent stake in Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix will be a further step in the consolidation and strengthening of our team for the future,” he said. “Motor racing, particularly Formula 1, is a very specialized industry, and we are privileged to have such strong and understanding partners as Daimler and Aabar to support our joint ambitions.
“I remain fully committed to our team for the long-term, along with the management team and all of our employees. We all look forward to the challenge of making our team successful, and proudly representing Mercedes-Benz and the racing tradition of the Silver Arrows.”
With Mercedes, one always feels their participation in racing is primarily for the love of it, not the marketing assets of it and that is why they stand alone among the car manufacturing industry. Their efforts and commitment to the DTM series has been exemplary and their willingness to groom young drivers and give them the financial backing they need to progress is commendable.
Max