It Must Be NASCAR’s Lucky Day
It isn’t every day news of a racing related lawsuit hits the wires and doesn’t have NASCAR listed as a defendant.
But today is one of those days.
A US appeals court has tossed to the rumble strip an attempt by US fans to get a financial do over by reclaiming their money after the FIAsco called the United States Grand Prix at Indianapolis in 2005.
Fans sued IMS, Michelin, the FIA and the racing teams involved ((Ferrari, Minardi and Jordan), arguing that Grand Prix contracts require a minimum of 12 cars to be present.
Judge Richard Cudahy concluded that a six-car race might have been “less rich, interesting or challenging than a 12-car race” but that this was not prohibited nor nonsensical under the rules.
Gee… ya think Judge?
I beg to differ Judge and file this dissenting opinion:
Bernie and Mad Max got their normal cut of the action and weren’t “less rich.” And as was normal in 2005 the Minardi-Cosworths of Albers and Friesacher found it damn “challenging” to complete any race but they did at Indy, albeit 2 laps down to the leader.
Less “interesting? Judge, I guess you got me there, I’ve got no retort.
I will note it was interesting, in a Keystone Cops sort of way, watching as 14 highly tuned F1 machines peeled-off into the pits after the parade lap as if they were part of the Bulgarian Synchronized Swimming Team. Ha-ha, I guess.
So I suppose the judge and I both are correct in our own way. But so was Speeds Bob Varsha who called the spectacle a “travesty.”
A French travesty I might add aided & abetted by Bernie and Mad Max.
This is a very litigious society, and this is another of those cases that didn’t really hold water. The folks who went to that race were offered compensation by Michelin (IIRC). I was disappointed as well. F1 is on very shaky grounds in the US to begin with and to have our race reduced to a travesty sure didn’t help.
If I had to blame anybody, I’d take Tony George. There was indication from the very start of the race weekend that the final turn was causing trouble for the Michelin runners and he could have introduced a chicane or something that would have eliminated the problems caused by the tire loading, but Tony was Tony and refused to budge an inch. I don’t blame Michelin for their suggestion to skip the race or the drivers for following it. It’s one thing to take a calculated risk, but it’s another thing entirely to defy death by using tires that are known to be subject to failure in probably the fastest turn in F1. If the commentators on Speed were correct, Tony could have fixed the problem but refused, so he’s my villain here.
Stupid suit, I don’t see how you can blame IMS or Tony George (there’e a first, ME defending TG) he was as much a victim as the fans. While Michelin may have started the problem, re tyres, the blame for an “event” not going ahead lays squarely at the feet of Mosley as the FIA President & Bernie as the commercial rights holder.
Max was a crass opportunist who used it as a vehicle to humiliate & punish the Michelin runners - all off whom were GPMA breakaway members - & Bernie stood by letting Max do his dirty work i.e. sticking it in those same pesky,vocal the manufacturers.
In fairness to Minardi/Stoddart he was the only Bridgestone runner to boycott the event, but was forced into running when faced with the Jordan/Midland cars capitalising on the guaranteed points for taking the chequered flag. He publicly said he didn’t want to race & stated that he would withdraw if Midland did, or if their cars fell out of the race.
Dumb suit, but there are always lawyers to champion a cause, so it’s not that big a surprise.
Paul you need to revisit the history of the USGP. A chicane was offered as a solution, it was turned down by the FIA, not TG.
They “also refused to bend any rules to allow the seven Michelin supplied teams to switch to tires newly arrived from France after those used in practice and qualifying here were deemed unsafe for the race by the manufacturer.”
The FIA was stupid for not allowing Michelin drivers to use safe tires. But that’s the FIA all over — they’ll strain at gnats all day long but refuse to consider the interests of the fans in any way. Not smart considering they’re the ones who pay the bills.
And I’d swear I remember the commentators saying that it was George who wouldn’t allow the chicane. Could be wrong though — I’ve got nothing to back up my memory of it.