27/03/2014
NEWS STORY
In a surprisingly lacklustre press conference, the assembled drivers were largely dismissive of fans concerns regarding the new formula.
Other than the sound - or lack of it - fans have expressed unhappiness over a number of issues including the fact that, in terms of the racing, Melbourne wasn't as radically different as hoped for, the complexity of the new rules and the ongoing saga of the fuel flow meter, an issue which could dominate this weekend and Bahrain also.
Following the example of their employers, the drivers were giving nothing away today, towing the party line and generally insisting that - with the 'there is nothing wrong here, move along' attitude we have grown used to - the fans will get used to it.
"It's quite popular to criticise Formula One nowadays, I think," argued Daniil Kvyat, clearly already a master of F1 spin after just one race, "and there is always some new technology coming and it has happened for me to debut in a new Formula One, let's say. It's quite interesting, I would say.
"The standard, with the new technology, has to change at some point and I think it's quite interesting," he added. "It's still fast, it's going to be faster all the time and we will see at the end of the year how much better it is or not, so it's early days."
"I think it's been all good for F1," added Melbourne winner Nico Rosberg, who, in a pre-season promotional video for Mercedes, mocked many of the new regulations. "It's changed around the pecking order which is definitely good for everybody because the same guy winning last year... we needed a bit of a change to that, so that's been good. The cars are great to drive, that's fine, so I think it's all good."
"I think I definitely enjoy driving them because of course it's definitely not easy at the beginning," said Kamui Kobayashi in a masterpiece of understatement considering a brake issue - synonymous with the new formula - saw him crash out at the very first corner in Melbourne, taking a hapless Felipe Massa with him, "but I remember there were quite similar headlines before, but after a few years or a few months everybody forgot, so I don't think it's a big problem. But for us we're still enjoying driving. It's more challenging to drive in dry races, so I'm pretty happy."
"To be honest, I don't have much to say, because I've not spent a lot of time in the car at the moment," sighed Pastor Maldonado. "It's quite early, but it doesn't feel a lot different to what we had in the past. For sure, it's a more complicated car, especially for the technicians, for the engineers in the paddock. For us, it's a bit easier on the steering wheel. It's a bit more complicated but it's what we have at the moment. It's the same for everyone."
"I don't think it's awfully different as a driver, to compare last year's cars to this year's," said Kimi Raikkonen. "Obviously there are some small detailed issues but it's the bigger issues that make a difference for me, just to be in a different team. Every team feels a bit different, different cars. It doesn't really change an awful lot as a driver."
Meanwhile, one driver who wasn't afraid to give his thoughts on the one topic that has pretty dominated since Melbourne - other than 'Flowgate' (sorry, but it had to be done) - was Sebastian Vettel.
"It's s***!" he told reporters when asked about the new sound of F1. "I was on the pit wall during the race... it's better than in the bar! That's my opinion and I think for the fans as well.
"Formula One has to be spectacular and the sound is one of the most important things," he continued. "When I was a small child, I don't remember much, but I remember when I was six-years-old and we went to see the cars during free practice. The one thing I remember was the sound, how loud they were, to feel the cars through the ground and the whole ground was vibrating. It's a shame you don't have that."
However, his view isn't shared by Jenson Button who is clearly sick to death of the moaners, including those within the paddock.
"Go and race something else if you're not happy," declared the McLaren driver. "As drivers we don't have an opinion where the cars are in terms of sound and feel. But when you cross the finish line first you've won a grand prix, so you don't care what the car sounds like or what it looks like. You've beaten the best in the world, and that's all you care about."
Check out our Thursday gallery, here.
Chris Balfe