London GP?

[bhallg2k]

Ignoring the fact that it's just smoke and mirrors. Anyone who thinks it's safe to race THROUGH admiralty arch in any circumstances is nuts. What if Maldonaldo and Hamilton go into that side by side!?!?!

I take it all back. I'm now strongly in favor of the London GP. Let's make this happen!

[bruceafc]

Sorry i double posted.


But as said before i think bernie is destroying f1 credability, whats wrong with purpose built circuits

I see that term tossed around a lot "destroy the credibility". In what way, please be precise, is the credibility of the motorsport of Formula One racing destroyed by an attempt to put on a race in the middle of the largest city in the heart of F1 country?

For a start there is no need for more than 1 or 2 street circuits in F1 with the exception of Melbourne.Personally i think street circuits are boring and the sole reason alone of why Bernie desides to race in places like Singapore and Valencia is because of the sake of being there not on track merit.most street circuits are filled with 90 degree corners and hardley any overtaking opertunatitys which makes the races very boring.And the fact that tracks like Spa may not be on the calendar every year beacause it may have to alternate with a other track,which really pisses me off.F1 is now becoming like a circus, well that is how i feel bernie is treating the sport. hes done it time and time again, Hes taken F1 to the streets of Singapore, Valencia, maybe New jersey and now London gp, on the sole reason it will be extraordinary and fasinating to watch the cars fly around London, well its not, it makes the race very boring for the viewer.Whats so bad with PURPOSE BUILT TRACKS, there built for a reason to make the racing great and the track challanging for the driver.

[andartop]

What pisses me off the most about this story is how they got JB and LH to advertise the whole thing, being British and all. Surely, any of the current drivers would be smart enough to understand this could never happen. This is not marketing, this is sillier than a GP in the North Pole.

[thearmofbarlow]

For a start there is no need for more than 1 or 2 street circuits in F1 with the exception of Melbourne.Personally i think street circuits are boring and the sole reason alone of why Bernie desides to race in places like Singapore and Valencia is because of the sake of being there not on track merit.most street circuits are filled with 90 degree corners and hardley any overtaking opertunatitys which makes the races very boring.And the fact that tracks like Spa may not be on the calendar every year beacause it may have to alternate with a other track,which really pisses me off.F1 is now becoming like a circus, well that is how i feel bernie is treating the sport. hes done it time and time again, Hes taken F1 to the streets of Singapore, Valencia, maybe New jersey and now London gp, on the sole reason it will be extraordinary and fasinating to watch the cars fly around London, well its not, it makes the race very boring for the viewer.Whats so bad with PURPOSE BUILT TRACKS, there built for a reason to make the racing great and the track challanging for the driver.

So you'll make an exception for Melbourne, I'm guessing one for Canada too? The vaunted Spa was all public roads at one point as well. If you want purpose built have a look at Abu Dhabi. It might be a street circuit, but the streets were reconstructed as a temporary F1 track, same as Melbourne and Canada.

Personally I don't give a rat's ass if the races are on streets, a dedicated track, Mars, the surface of the sun, your mom's backyard... don't care. Valencia this year showed us how good that track can be. Abu Dhabi will probably do the same. Singapore I'm not certain about, honestly, but who knows? Rather than sit around and moan I'll just watch the races and have some damn fun. Which is what racing is about.

[strad]

I agree with this article I read..

Last week amid much fanfare and loads of hype a grand prix through the streets of London was proposed at a high profile glitzy affair hosted by big Formula 1 spenders Santander, naturally in London.

Sifting through the PR spin revealed that the proposal is really a pipe dream, a well-concocted fantasy to extract media mileage at a time when the UK is garnering untold column inches with major sporting events from Wimbledon tennis to British Open golf, the Grand Prix at Silverstone and of course the biggest show of them all — the Olympics later this month.

So proposing a grand prix through a city pock marked with famous landmarks is a great way to piggy back on the media wave.

How likely is it that we will see Formula 1 cars zooming past Buckingham Palace — as per the track map handed out to media — and then screeching past Big Ben, Parliament Square, Embankment, Saint James, Piccadilly and Admiralty Arch off Trafalgar Square?
Nice idea but just think about it, imagine 24 F1 cars heading at top speed vying to get through the arch where normal daily traffic streams through in single file and there is no way around it.

And then imagine for three days the inconvenience and logistical nightmare such a project would be, considering that the race would probably require a couple of weeks at minimum to mount the safety fences and all the equipment to run a Formula 1 race in downtown London. And then factor in the immense noise and inevitable disruptions over the three days required for a grand prix weekend…

You get the drift? The London Grand Prix is highly unlikely to happen.

Even Jenson Button who was the star attraction at the Santander event to announce the ‘dream’ told Reuters, “Do I like the idea of having a London Grand Prix? But I’m not sure where it would be.”........

[mx_tifoso]

Where did you read it?

And I'm not a supporter of this proposal, seeing how we have so many dedicated circuits around the world that would be so epic. France doesn't even have a GP, and that says it all for me.

[strad]

Where did you read it?

And I'm not a supporter of this proposal, seeing how we have so many dedicated circuits around the world that would be so epic. France doesn't even have a GP, and that says it all for me.

Well I had to go search thru where I'd been to find it...Shoulda done a Hansel and Gretel or sumthing...It was GulfNews...whoever that is...I'm sure it's one of the most highly respected F1 news sources.

[matt21]

Video of proposed track

http://www.ms-total.de/vt/2012_06_30_London_POV_High.flv

[Princey]

The reason Jenson and Lewis did it aside from being British, is part of Santander sponsorship. It is a dream.. it would never happen in that layout.. it would be a logistical nightmare and they couldn't bring the London streets to a stand still for 4-5 days.. sleepy Monaco is one thing but Outside Parliament etc.. and if F1 cars ever race through marble arch.. I'll eat my hat.

Would love to eat my hat though.. it would look amazing!

[Gridlock]

They should just all play a bit of Project Gotham, I'm sure the track could be built in that

Q: What do you think of the London GP?
(shout from audience - 'smokescreen!')
Leading team principal - "I'm glad you said that"

Sums it up.

[Harvey]

Maybe what's really desired is a couple years of IROC in the Olympic park..? This is a good way of drumming up some inner city motorsports flavoured enthusiasm within the British populace.