Derek Warwick’s Blog on Champions365.com

Derek Warwick, former F1 driver, has been writing his blog on the new sports portal website Champions365 (currently in BETA testing but due for launch early next year). Over the past 5 weeks Derek has been outspoken on the controversy surrounding this year’s F1 championship. Below are some quotes from his blogs found at www.champions365.com.

On the controversy at Spa and ensuing hearing in Paris:
‘To me that was just crazy, the FIA allowed McLaren and Lewis Hamilton to spend a day putting forward their case for overturning the stewards’ decision when there was never any chance of the appeal being allowed. But then, nothing the FIA does at the moment surprises me.’

‘I don’t understand how McLaren can be put through that whole Court of Appeal hearing process only to be told the next day that the appeal was “inadmissible”. On the one hand you have this treatment of McLaren and Hamilton and then you have the situation with Massa at Valencia and Singapore and it is confusing.’

‘Motor racing should be technical and leading edge not confusing and political. I don’t understand what is going on and I am a former driver who is still very involved in motor sport, so I don’t know what Joe Bloggs can be making of all this.’

Meeting Sebastian Vettel:
‘I met Sebastian earlier this year at the British Grand Prix where he did a little informal talk to British Racing Drivers’ Club members and I have to say he was totally engaging and a very nice young man, he shook everyone by the hand and addressed them as Mr and was very respectful.’

On the Singapore night race:
‘You would think that Bernie Ecclestone and the FIA would insist that if a country wants a new GP, whether it is a street circuit or a purpose built race track, there are enough brains around in modern day motor racing to build a circuit that can accommodate overtaking, but yet again they failed. Yes it was spectacular under the light and yes it was the first race in Singapore, but it was bloody boring, the only overtaking was by default.’

On the driver’s request for a minutes silence for the Madrid air disaster victims being turned down:
‘Once again this shows that if something doesn’t suit Bernie Ecclestone, Max Moseley or the FIA it doesn’t happen, but any ideas they have everyone has to go along with, I suppose that’s what a dictatorship is all about. It just goes to show how voiceless the drivers can be sometimes, even when it is something they feel strongly about like the Madrid disaster, they are powerless to do anything unless it suits the powers in F1.’

Derek’s blog on the Japanese grand prix can be found at:  http://champions365.com/experts/derekwarwick/view