The news that Monza may have to share the Italian GP with Imola shows how decadent F1 has become. Decadent is the only word.
Grand Prix racing without Monza hosting the Italian GP is unthinkable but then, I guess, so was the idea of Grand Prix racing without France or Germany. Or giving double points to Abu Dhabi.
As I write this Wimbledon has begun and I do not have to use more than the name of a pleasant suburb in South West London to say what that means. Wimbledon is only one of the 'Grand Slam' tournaments. In terms of prize money and how it affects a player's ranking, it is equal with other major tournaments, but it is actually the first among equals.
The deciding factor is history. There are some sports venues which imply 'through this gate, or down these steps, the greatest in the game have trod.' Monza is one such venue.
Monza is more than just history, it is one of the great circuits. The layout has changed over the years, and the experiments with bankings were abandoned, but there it sits in a former royal park, a majestic creation.
There was a time when a threat to Monza could not have been believed. But then Formula One was sold.
According to The Daily Telegraph, the stake CVC Capital Partners took in Formula One is the best-ever investment by a private equity company, They have recouped five times their investment and put not a penny into the sport.
The ever-increasing demands by FOM has put circuits in jeopardy on behalf of investors. It is hard to blame CVC, it is what they do. They do not create anything, they make money by shifting money around. The people to blame are those who allowed it to happen. The FIA, under Max Mosley, sold the family silver for a pittance.
Azerbaijan is an oil-rich country whose notoriously corrupt government wants to strut on the world stage and so is prepared to pay through the nose to subsidise a race. Monza, the world's oldest Grand Prix circuit, has to pay its way.
Azerbaijan, as a country, has shown no interest in motor racing, Monza has the tifosi. It seems that this counts for nothing.
In my last piece I commented how NASCAR and Indianapolis put on a show. Part of that show is celebrating their history. Talledega has a fine museum devoted to NASCAR (there is a display of a dozen or so photographs acknowledging the existence of Grand Prix racing). It is part of the American approach to sport which includes Halls of Fame that celebrate the achievements of past players. I bet every kid who follows baseball knows about Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb, Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle and 'Shoeless' Joe Jackson.
Then there is the superb museum at the Indianapolis Speedway. Both museums charge reasonable admission and neither tries to rip off the public when it comes to souvenirs. They understand that history makes the present important and so they promote it as widely as they can.
Monza opened in 1922; it predates Le Mans and only Indianapolis is older. Its importance to motor racing history cannot be over-stated any more than the Italian contribution. I defy anyone to visit Monza and not be aware of its spirit.
The contribution of Azerbaijan to automotive and motor racing history is easy: it is zero, zippo, zilch. Its cash contribution to FOM is another matter, but we are not allowed to know what it is.
There is an argument which says that racing should be open to all countries. It is, even Andorra has a track. The motor sport I have loved all my life begins with local car clubs running simple rallies and treasure hunts. It progresses via sprints and hill climbs. It involves marshals and medical teams, without whom motor sport cannot take place. It grows from the grass roots.
A marshal at a club meeting at Silverstone, Hockenheim or Monza hopes to be part of the show at a Grand Prix. They are part of a motor racing culture. Some countries have such a culture, most do not. I think that a country should demonstrate that it has a motor racing culture before it is allowed a Grand Prix.
No matter how much money I have, I cannot turn up at Wimbledon with a tennis bat and expect to play.
What rankles me is that countries can use the top level of the sport merely to promote themselves by writing a cheque. Countries like Abu Dhabi, Azerbaijan and Bahrain did not create the technology to exploit the oil beneath their feet. Instead, they herded goats and traded slaves. In effect, they are lottery winners with the vulgarity of so many lottery winners.
History is important, it gives value to the present, and Monza represents history. To put it in jeopardy while promoting the like of Azerbaijan is an act of barbarism.
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