A special birthday for F1 honcho Ross Brawn
‘THE ONLY WAY TO DRIVE F1 FORWARD IS BY OPTING FOR AMENDMENTS’
When Ross Brawn took charge of Formula One as a promoter, his challenge was to make the sport more appealing to fans, ensure the interest of car manufacturers and keep its teams in business.
Yesterday, Brawn celebrated his 63rd birthday at the Yas Marina Circuit and acknowledged in an exclusive interview with Gulf News that this one was a “bit special”.
There was clearly a sense of achievement here as the successful conclusion of Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix would also mean the completion of the maiden F1 season under his reign as managing director of motorsports for the Formula One Group, as per his plans.
“It was a bit special as I was spending my birthday on a racetrack not as a competitor he said. “I’m enjoying my new role: it’s a great experience. There is the possibility to change the world where I grew up and not just for the sake of change but to make it stronger and better.”
Brawn feels his challenge was different this time round and the target was no longer victory but the fans’ enjoyment because they must remain at the centre of the sport.
“Liberty Media acquired Formula One to make it more entertaining and I’m proud they have asked me to help them achieve this,” said Brawn, who added that he was quite pleased with the way he marshaled his resources and went about his business.
“From a personal point of view I would rate myself an eight out of 10. As I said before, I’m enjoying my new life very much. From a sporting point of view, I would say nine out of 10, It’s been an exciting season, with a lot of good races and a nice fight for the championship between two great drivers like Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel. I’m sure the fans enjoyed this season as well, as we can see from the audience figures, which are growing both on TV and digital sides.”
Brawn was of the view that the biggest challenge he faced since takeover was mainly “cultural”.
“For many years, even simple changes were not even proposed because everyone was much too conservative. I was often told that something was not done differently only because “it’s been always done like this,” said Brawn, who added that under his command the atmosphere has already changed dramatically.
“No one is now worried to suggest new ideas: not all of them will work or be implemented, but it’s good to see people who now dare to do new things.”
Brawn has been a strong advocate of change and he firmly believes the only way to drive Formula One forward is by opting for amendments that would give every team an even platform to perform.
New financial framework
“Formula One must think towards the future. We need to make changes to the sporting and technical regulations and introduce a new financial framework. Thus we need to create the conditions which can allow more teams to be competitive at the maximum level. These are the targets that the FIA and Liberty Media have set for the long-term future of our sport,” said Brawn, who brushed aside the suggestion that dealing with the bigwigs of F1 racing was turning out to be a difficult proposition. “No, I know the environment pretty well,” he added.
A lot has been said about Brawn’s 2021 proposal to make F1 more affordable and competitive. Few teams have already raised their apprehensions but the chief is confident that his vision will be a reality.
“It’s a vision which will make the sport better, stronger and more sustainable. Together with the FIA, we are talking with all the parties involved, from the teams to the manufacturers, in order to find an agreement and I’m pretty confident we will succeed,” he said. “Everyone has the same interest, which is the good and the longevity of the sport.”
Brawn also refuted the notion that one-team domination was taking the sheen off F1.
“Well, last year the championship was decided at the very last race and the same happened in 2014, so I cannot say that this is something which happens so often: since 2010, the last Grand Prix was the decisive one four times.