F1: Then vs. Now

Amy Brooks said:...just bring back the clutch paddles and manual gearboxes, add a whistling turbo😍 and run narrower tires in the front with wider ones in the back, along with a few other "little details."

The Lotus 79 or the McLaren MP 4/4—absolute perfection.😍

Look, improving safety? Absolutely, I’m all for that.

But instead, the FIA bans everything that actually makes racing interesting and replaces it with nonsense like KERS—and if you ask me, that hybrid turbo setup is just more stupidity🙂 on top of all these other incremental tweaks—all while messing around with the chassis design.🤦

Think back to the early 90s: once they added those paddle shifters to Berger's Ferrari and let electronics take over, the soul of the cars just went downhill.

True, that would be the solution... but modern Formula 1 is obsessed with nothing but being a spectacle. I mean, remember how much drama there was just over the sound of the turbos?
8/

It’s all become one big show business now... not a sport, or at least, not the kind of sport it used to be.😉

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Why bother with safety?

If you don't have the guts, stay off the track.

Jason Campbell70 said:Why bother with safety?

If you don't have the guts, stay off the track.

Have you actually driven anything, or have you just sat there watching a friend die in your arms?

Give me a break—don't talk nonsense if you haven't a clue what you're talking about.
☕

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electricmaker40 said:Have you actually driven anything, or have you just sat there watching a friend die in your arms?

Give me a break—don't talk nonsense if you haven't a clue what you're talking about.
☕

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electricmaker40 said:Have you actually driven anything, or have you just sat there watching a friend die in your arms?

Give me a break—don't talk nonsense if you haven't a clue what you're talking about.
☕

Sent from my iPhone.

He hasn't, but I have. I’ve raced everything from modified cars in the Northeast Division to bikes and sailboats—basically anything with wheels or a hull. Nobody ever died in my hands, but I've seen plenty of broken legs, arms, collarbones, and busted heads. Cycling is the absolute worst—I’ve dealt with broken collarbones, concussions, short-term amnesia—that whole mess.

Even after all that, I'm still siding with Jason Campbell70 over you. Formula 1 is the peak of motorsport—which means it has to be a challenge for the brave—it has to stand for fearlessness. In the eyes of the fans, a Formula 1 driver should be a fearless hero, a knight—not some total crybaby. Get it?

Go watch some modified racing and you'll see just how many broken limbs there actually are. It’s honestly pathetic that guys like Sebastian Vettel or Fernando Alonso, who brag about being world champions, wouldn't touch a modified car if their lives depended on it. Think about it—guys like Mario Andretti, Jim Clark, and God knows who else before them drove everything to get where they were going. It’s sad how today's drivers are becoming more like models and less like actual racers.

Formula 1 drivers aren't some kind of damn gladiators or players in a game of Russian roulette... I fail to see why technical skill should be inherently tied to gambling with one's life.

ruggedhawk20 said:He hasn't, but I have. I’ve raced everything from modified cars in the Northeast Division to bikes and sailboats—basically anything with wheels or a hull. Nobody ever died in my hands, but I've seen plenty of broken legs, arms, collarbones, and busted heads. Cycling is the absolute worst—I’ve dealt with broken collarbones, concussions, short-term amnesia—that whole mess.

Even after all that, I'm still siding with Jason Campbell70 over you. Formula 1 is the peak of motorsport—which means it has to be a challenge for the brave—it has to stand for fearlessness. In the eyes of the fans, a Formula 1 driver should be a fearless hero, a knight—not some total crybaby. Get it?

Go watch some modified racing and you'll see just how many broken limbs there actually are. It’s honestly pathetic that guys like Sebastian Vettel or Fernando Alonso, who brag about being world champions, wouldn't touch a modified car if their lives depended on it. Think about it—guys like Mario Andretti, Jim Clark, and God knows who else before them drove everything to get where they were going. It’s sad how today's drivers are becoming more like models and less like actual racers.

You clearly don't have a clue what you're talking about... you obviously don't know enough about Formula 1... it's incredibly dangerous, even with all these safety buffers they put in place for the drivers these days!

For those who actually know their Formula 1 history, I don't even need to list examples... but for people like you, who haven't done the homework—maybe go watch some races from the last 20 years!

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William Bennett53 said:Formula 1 drivers aren't some kind of damn gladiators or players in a game of Russian roulette... I fail to see why technical skill should be inherently tied to gambling with one's life.

Because—sometimes a driver wins purely on guts.

But that’s just not how it works anymore. Take a rain-soaked track like Nurburgring or Fuji—some guys play it safe, others don't. Look at Nurburgring in '68—Jackie Stewart won because he knew his tires were better than everyone else's and he had to strike while the iron was hot—so he did. But he never drove like that again—because he was terrified of dying. That's the missing piece—that driver just giving up because they actually care about staying alive. The last time someone pulled that kind of move was Alain Prost in Australia back in '89—though honestly, that was more for the drama than actual fear—but whatever, let's roll with it. Basically, Boutsen beat him on pure nerve.

Nowadays? Nobody wins on guts. Nobody. It's honestly pathetic.

Just look at Rosemeyer—he won races on sheer bravery every single time—that's why he's a legend. You asking me if Sebastian Vettel will be a legend in 80 years? No—he won't—because he never had the chance to show true grit. Bravery is what people actually respect. That's why people love warriors, matadors, fighter pilots, knights, stuntmen—they're all brave. Grand Prix drivers used to be in that same club—not just in the club, but they were at the very top of the food chain when it came to courage.

Modern Formula 1 cars just aren't built for driving in the rain—not in the way you’d actually want to experience it. Everything feels so sanitized now; just listen to the sound of those tires squealing through the corners... it's all so controlled.

I'm not sure what you used to get behind the wheel of, but it's clearly been a long time since you've actually driven anything.

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They were being loud as hell even before this—you could barely hear anything over the engines

Look, Formula 1 existed way before 2014 too

electricmaker40 said:Modern Formula 1 cars just aren't built for driving in the rain—not in the way you’d actually want to experience it. Everything feels so sanitized now; just listen to the sound of those tires squealing through the corners... it's all so controlled.

I'm not sure what you used to get behind the wheel of, but it's clearly been a long time since you've actually driven anything.

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Five years ago, they could. Now, all of a sudden, they can't. Why the change?

Just think back to the '96 Spanish GP.
Or maybe both Monaco races in the same year?

Belgium, '98.
The 2007 Japanese GP.

With today’s mindless rules, would we even be holding these races anymore?

electricmaker40 said:Modern Formula 1 cars just aren't built for driving in the rain—not in the way you’d actually want to experience it. Everything feels so sanitized now; just listen to the sound of those tires squealing through the corners... it's all so controlled.

I'm not sure what you used to get behind the wheel of, but it's clearly been a long time since you've actually driven anything.

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ruggedhawk20 said:They were being loud as hell even before this—you could barely hear anything over the engines

Look, Formula 1 existed way before 2014 too

ruggedhawk20 explained. ☕

Honestly, the sheer amount of nonsense one encounters on this forum is staggering 🙄
I truly hope we have all reached a level of maturity where we can collectively admit that it is far better for drivers to survive a crash than to lose their lives. If I were ever forced to choose between life and death, I would choose life, every single time.

graniteharbor502 said:Honestly, the sheer amount of nonsense one encounters on this forum is staggering 🙄
I truly hope we have all reached a level of maturity where we can collectively admit that it is far better for drivers to survive a crash than to lose their lives. If I were ever forced to choose between life and death, I would choose life, every single time.

Obviously it's better. What the previous posters were trying to get at—and what I completely agree with—is that modern Formula 1 has entirely stripped the courage and grit out of the equation for winning.

Sure, maybe someone breaks a finger or a rib during a botched, gutsy overtake now and then—but by that logic, let's just ban tackling in football, aggressive defense in handball, riding anything over five feet tall, or even throwing punches in boxing.

Bravery has been a defining factor in motorsport since its inception; today, it's virtually non-existent.

vividlynx68 said:Obviously it's better. What the previous posters were trying to get at—and what I completely agree with—is that modern Formula 1 has entirely stripped the courage and grit out of the equation for winning.

Sure, maybe someone breaks a finger or a rib during a botched, gutsy overtake now and then—but by that logic, let's just ban tackling in football, aggressive defense in handball, riding anything over five feet tall, or even throwing punches in boxing.

Bravery has been a defining factor in motorsport since its inception; today, it's virtually non-existent.

I wouldn't go so far as to say it's gone entirely; rather, it is simply that today, reckless drivers like Pastor Maldonado aren't causing fatal accidents or forcing others into them. Safety, in and of itself, isn't a bad thing. What is problematic, perhaps, are things like those asphalt runoff areas—we really ought to bring back the gravel traps. The same could be said for the excessive restrictions placed on car development and such matters.

graniteharbor502 said:I wouldn't go so far as to say it's gone entirely; rather, it is simply that today, reckless drivers like Pastor Maldonado aren't causing fatal accidents or forcing others into them. Safety, in and of itself, isn't a bad thing. What is problematic, perhaps, are things like those asphalt runoff areas—we really ought to bring back the gravel traps. The same could be said for the excessive restrictions placed on car development and such matters.

I'm pretty sure it was gravel, not sand.☕

I am like 101% certain about that.

graniteharbor502 said:I wouldn't go so far as to say it's gone entirely; rather, it is simply that today, reckless drivers like Pastor Maldonado aren't causing fatal accidents or forcing others into them. Safety, in and of itself, isn't a bad thing. What is problematic, perhaps, are things like those asphalt runoff areas—we really ought to bring back the gravel traps. The same could be said for the excessive restrictions placed on car development and such matters.

Asphalt runoffs are fine because the crew doesn't have to drag cars out of the gravel with cranes. What they actually need to do is cover those asphalt patches with something that'll wreck/damage the car so they can't just keep racing. Driver error should be punished—an asphalt zone doesn't punish anyone.

ruggedhawk20 said:Asphalt runoffs are fine because the crew doesn't have to drag cars out of the gravel with cranes. What they actually need to do is cover those asphalt patches with something that'll wreck/damage the car so they can't just keep racing. Driver error should be punished—an asphalt zone doesn't punish anyone.

Honestly, the asphalt zones even end up rewarding mistakes sometimes. Just look at La Source, or how they messed up at Blanchimont, though I guess you could forgive them there since it's such an insanely fast part of the track.

We need a middle ground here.

They should put about 5 meters of gravel around the track, and then after that, they can pave it.

Basically, just surround the circuit with a minimum 5-meter ring of gravel.

It would be far more effective if they installed a curb along the edge of the track, paired with a steep embankment on the runoff side. That way, if a driver loses control and slides off, there's no easy way to get back on the racing line. They’d essentially have to come to a near halt and crawl back onto the asphalt just to avoid ripping the nose off their car. It's a bit like when we try to drive our trucks up a steep gravel driveway and just end up spinning our wheels.

William Bennett53 said:It would be far more effective if they installed a curb along the edge of the track, paired with a steep embankment on the runoff side. That way, if a driver loses control and slides off, there's no easy way to get back on the racing line. They’d essentially have to come to a near halt and crawl back onto the asphalt just to avoid ripping the nose off their car. It's a bit like when we try to drive our trucks up a steep gravel driveway and just end up spinning our wheels.

Or better yet, let's just have a rule where if all four wheels leave the track, they get an automatic disqualification. Boom. Done.🙏