Another desert folly
I knew the madness of the Gulf Arabs had reached its zenith in December 2008 when, in the middle of the most severe banking crisis in history and the worst recession since modern economics began, it was announced that a hotel was under construction in Dubai that was so luxurious it even had a solution to the Gulf’s perennial problem of foot-scorching beaches. The gods were munificent in endowing the Gulf Arabs with more oil than they could pump but uncharitable in every other natural thing. The weather conditions are unkind for most of the year. Dubai may put about beguiling pictures of beautiful, sandy beaches but try putting your foot on them in, say, August, and you will leave your skin amongst the grains of sand. Solution: a refrigerated beach. A system of heat-absorbing pipes built under the sand and giant wind blowers will work in tandem to deliver perfect beach-combing conditions: mildly warm sands and a cool breeze. With this and the indoor ski resort you need never leave the magical land of Dubai.
But hang on a minute, I hear you remark, isn’t this taking things a touch too far? It isn’t as though the rest of the world has ceased to exist, has it? I mean to say, if I want perfectly clement weather conditions, clear, azure waters, coral reefs and sand that runs comfortably through my toes, why, I am spoiled for choice in the world. There are at least a score of places in the Indian Ocean and plenty others in the Caribbean and the Americas where I can get all of this without having to watch some money-crazed people setting the global warming clock galloping to Armageddon. If I am after a skiing holiday, why would I go to a cavernous hall blowing “snow” out of a tube in the middle of the desert when I can visit any one of several dozen European and American locations with clear blue skies and breathtakingly stunning snow-covered mountains in Europe and North America. This, I am afraid, is the curse of limitless riches. People completely lose touch with reality. They begin to believe that anything, even nature, can be defied by bucketloads of cash.
And so we come to the latest folly: yet another Grand Prix in the Gulf of Arabia. This at a time when a true classic - one of a tiny clutch of Grands Prix which are about the very essence of Formula One, its history and its charm – is under threat. The British Grand Prix may be consigned to the dustbin of history by Mr B. Ecclestone. The owners of Silverstone – including former F1 world champions Jackie Stewart and Damon Hill – refused to accede to Ecclestone’s demands for an escalating series of payments year on year and he, therefore, persuaded the owners of another old British race track, Donington Park, to take the place of Silverstone. Faced with the global economic slump, Donington’s owners found it impossible to raise the initial sums demanded and were forced to admit defeat to Ecclestone. He now faces the unenviable task of going back to the Silverstone chaps with his tail between his legs or find still more dodgy people with large wallets in other parts of the world.
The trouble is that this has now become a dangerous game. Ecclestone’s insatiable appetite for money has finally got to the point where he runs the risk of killing the goose that lays the golden eggs. There are certain races that you simply cannot afford to mess about with. If you get rid of the Monaco Grand Prix, the Italian Grand Prix, the British Grand Prix or the German Grand Prix, you are on the path that leads to the wolves. To make way for races in ridiculous places like Bahrain, Abu Dhabi and the others he is contemplating, Ecclestone has already jettisoned seasonal favourites like the Austrian Grand Prix, the Canadian Grand Prix and the United States Grand Prix. At this rate, Ecclestone’s epitaph will certainly be “the man who killed Formula One”. I keep wondering why he can’t simply get run over by a bus…
Perhaps one ought not to cavil too much at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix this weekend. For all the billions he has spent on his glittering new circuit, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan has already received as much embarrassment from Interlagos as it is possible to suffer. The fact of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix being the last race of the season with no championship at stake provides an opportunity for a lot of fun. No driver has to hold back and be cautious. More than half the paddock are moving on to different teams next year, so there is the “going out in a blaze of glory” factor to be considered. These things should make for an interesting racing weekend.
With many drivers’ contracts for next year still under negotiation, a fair few will be looking to prove a point in Abu Dhabi so as to enhance their earning potential. A look at the 2009 salaries is instructive:
2009 driver salaries – US $ (m)
1 . K. Raikkonen - Ferrari F60 - 45
2 . L. Hamilton - McLaren Mercedes MP4-24 - 18
3 . F. Alonso - Renault R29 - 15
4 . N. Rosberg - Williams Toyota FW31 - 8.5
5 . F. Massa - Ferrari F60 - 8
6 . J. Trulli - Toyota TF109 - 6.5
7 . S. Vettel - Red Bull Renault RB5 - 6
8 . M. Webber - Red Bull Renault RB5 - 5.5
9 . J. Button - Brawn Mercedes BGP 001 - 5
10 . R. Kubica - BMW Sauber F1.09 - 4.5
11 . H. Kovalainen - McLaren Mercedes MP4-24 - 3.5
12 . N. Heidfeld - BMW Sauber F1.09 - 2.8
13 . G. Fisichella - Ferrari F60 - 1.5
14 . S. Buemi - Toro Rosso Ferrari STR4 - 1.5
15 . R. Barrichello - Brawn Mercedes BGP 001 - 1
16 . J. Alguersuari - Toro Rosso Ferrari STR4 - 0.5
17 . A. Sutil - Force India Mercedes VJM02 - 0
18 . K. Nakajima - Williams Toyota FW31 - 0
19 . V. Liuzzi - Force India Mercedes VJM02 - 0
20 . R. Grosjean - Renault R29 – 0
You can probably see now why Ferrari were so keen to get rid of Kimi Raikkonen! This also shows me that Barrichello probably earned a fair bit in his Ferrari days because a measly $1 million doesn’t do an awful lot for a guy with his lifestyle (you might have read that Jenson Button flew back to England in Barrichello’s private jet after winning the world championship in Brazil). It will be interesting to compare this with next year’s list.
I hope it is an exciting race – after all, the Sheikh’s billions should at the very least have built a challenging circuit! – and that you will,
Enjoy Abu Dhabi!
Gitau29 October 2009
But hang on a minute, I hear you remark, isn’t this taking things a touch too far? It isn’t as though the rest of the world has ceased to exist, has it? I mean to say, if I want perfectly clement weather conditions, clear, azure waters, coral reefs and sand that runs comfortably through my toes, why, I am spoiled for choice in the world. There are at least a score of places in the Indian Ocean and plenty others in the Caribbean and the Americas where I can get all of this without having to watch some money-crazed people setting the global warming clock galloping to Armageddon. If I am after a skiing holiday, why would I go to a cavernous hall blowing “snow” out of a tube in the middle of the desert when I can visit any one of several dozen European and American locations with clear blue skies and breathtakingly stunning snow-covered mountains in Europe and North America. This, I am afraid, is the curse of limitless riches. People completely lose touch with reality. They begin to believe that anything, even nature, can be defied by bucketloads of cash.
And so we come to the latest folly: yet another Grand Prix in the Gulf of Arabia. This at a time when a true classic - one of a tiny clutch of Grands Prix which are about the very essence of Formula One, its history and its charm – is under threat. The British Grand Prix may be consigned to the dustbin of history by Mr B. Ecclestone. The owners of Silverstone – including former F1 world champions Jackie Stewart and Damon Hill – refused to accede to Ecclestone’s demands for an escalating series of payments year on year and he, therefore, persuaded the owners of another old British race track, Donington Park, to take the place of Silverstone. Faced with the global economic slump, Donington’s owners found it impossible to raise the initial sums demanded and were forced to admit defeat to Ecclestone. He now faces the unenviable task of going back to the Silverstone chaps with his tail between his legs or find still more dodgy people with large wallets in other parts of the world.
The trouble is that this has now become a dangerous game. Ecclestone’s insatiable appetite for money has finally got to the point where he runs the risk of killing the goose that lays the golden eggs. There are certain races that you simply cannot afford to mess about with. If you get rid of the Monaco Grand Prix, the Italian Grand Prix, the British Grand Prix or the German Grand Prix, you are on the path that leads to the wolves. To make way for races in ridiculous places like Bahrain, Abu Dhabi and the others he is contemplating, Ecclestone has already jettisoned seasonal favourites like the Austrian Grand Prix, the Canadian Grand Prix and the United States Grand Prix. At this rate, Ecclestone’s epitaph will certainly be “the man who killed Formula One”. I keep wondering why he can’t simply get run over by a bus…
Perhaps one ought not to cavil too much at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix this weekend. For all the billions he has spent on his glittering new circuit, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan has already received as much embarrassment from Interlagos as it is possible to suffer. The fact of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix being the last race of the season with no championship at stake provides an opportunity for a lot of fun. No driver has to hold back and be cautious. More than half the paddock are moving on to different teams next year, so there is the “going out in a blaze of glory” factor to be considered. These things should make for an interesting racing weekend.
With many drivers’ contracts for next year still under negotiation, a fair few will be looking to prove a point in Abu Dhabi so as to enhance their earning potential. A look at the 2009 salaries is instructive:
2009 driver salaries – US $ (m)
1 . K. Raikkonen - Ferrari F60 - 45
2 . L. Hamilton - McLaren Mercedes MP4-24 - 18
3 . F. Alonso - Renault R29 - 15
4 . N. Rosberg - Williams Toyota FW31 - 8.5
5 . F. Massa - Ferrari F60 - 8
6 . J. Trulli - Toyota TF109 - 6.5
7 . S. Vettel - Red Bull Renault RB5 - 6
8 . M. Webber - Red Bull Renault RB5 - 5.5
9 . J. Button - Brawn Mercedes BGP 001 - 5
10 . R. Kubica - BMW Sauber F1.09 - 4.5
11 . H. Kovalainen - McLaren Mercedes MP4-24 - 3.5
12 . N. Heidfeld - BMW Sauber F1.09 - 2.8
13 . G. Fisichella - Ferrari F60 - 1.5
14 . S. Buemi - Toro Rosso Ferrari STR4 - 1.5
15 . R. Barrichello - Brawn Mercedes BGP 001 - 1
16 . J. Alguersuari - Toro Rosso Ferrari STR4 - 0.5
17 . A. Sutil - Force India Mercedes VJM02 - 0
18 . K. Nakajima - Williams Toyota FW31 - 0
19 . V. Liuzzi - Force India Mercedes VJM02 - 0
20 . R. Grosjean - Renault R29 – 0
You can probably see now why Ferrari were so keen to get rid of Kimi Raikkonen! This also shows me that Barrichello probably earned a fair bit in his Ferrari days because a measly $1 million doesn’t do an awful lot for a guy with his lifestyle (you might have read that Jenson Button flew back to England in Barrichello’s private jet after winning the world championship in Brazil). It will be interesting to compare this with next year’s list.
I hope it is an exciting race – after all, the Sheikh’s billions should at the very least have built a challenging circuit! – and that you will,
Enjoy Abu Dhabi!
Gitau29 October 2009
posted by Gitau at 12:04 pm
1 Comments:
Well, I had always ascribed Raikkonen's perenially bored expression and unsubtle hints about maybe taking next year off to some peculiarity of the Finnish psyche, but maybe he's just not that hungry anymore.
On another note, early days, but Kobayashi strikes me as the only one of the new crop with real potential. Hopefully Toyota doesn't pull out (as Supersport is speculating) and leave him without a drive.
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