Adam Cooper F1

Bernie added that FOM was “not insured for this sort of thing,” and insisted that he’s still trying to reschedule the race.

“If and when it is rescheduled they will pay their usual fee.

“What has happened in Bahrain is desperately sad but one month ago everyone was looking forward to the race. No one had a problem with it then. If everything is peaceful, which we hope it will be, then we will try our best to fit it in.”

Ecclestone also insisted that Bahrain did not pay an extra premium to hold the first race.

FOTA is considering a plan to move the extra Barcelona test from March 8-11 to March 10-13, and is canvassing the teams today.

The original date emerged yesterday, after it became clear that Bahrain wasn’t going ahead. The new date would exactly mirror that of the Bahrain GP weekend, and ending on a Saturday/Sunday, would guarantee the track a bumper crowd.

Either way the teams will travel back to their home bases in order to prepare the cars for shipping to Melbourne. It seems that some teams would prefer to have two extra days of ‘factory time’ for R&D and production of new parts before the test, rather than after it.

If the date does change it leaves a 16-day gap between the two Barcelona tests, although teams do have some leeway to do straightline running – a logical move given that the Idiada test track is right outside Barcelona – or if they haven’t already used their allocation, some filming work.

The FIA has broken its silence on the Bahrain GP matter by issuing a short statement tonight, with no sign of any quotes from the organisation’s President, Jean Todt.

This has clearly been an awkward situation for the Frenchman. As noted here previously, Sheikh Abdullah Bin Isa Al-Khalifa, President of the Bahrain Motor Federation, was one of Todt’s key allies in his election campaign, helping to pull in votes from the Middle East. He was also invited to host one of the first WMSC meetings under the new president, in March 2010. He is a member of the WMSC, and is in charge of the CIK, the karting arm of the FIA.

Inevitably the FIA has had to tread a difficult path, and Todt seemingly decided that keeping a low profile was the best option. However in the release the FIA is keen to trumpet its role in proceedings.

The statement reads: “The Federation Internationale de l’Automobile supports the decision of the Bahrain Motor Federation and the Bahrain International Circuit to postpone the scheduled first Grand Prix of the 2011 season due to be held in the Kingdom of Bahrain on March 11-13.

“This decision is the outcome of the close co-operation between the FIA, Formula One Management, the Bahrain Motor Federation and the Bahrain International Circuit.”

It then reminded us that :”The FIA is Formula One’s governing body and is responsible for the international calendar as well as all matters of safety relating to the stakeholders involved in Grand Prix racing.”

The F1 teams are to return to Barcelona for the final pre-season test, following the cancellation of both the Bahrain GP and the March 3-6 test that was to have preceded it.

The new Barcelona test will take place on March 8-11, after which the cars will be flown to Australia. Teams thus now have an unexpected 14-day gap with no official track action, although some may now try to squeeze in straightline or filming days in order to get some extra running.

Teams are packing up in Barcelona tonight and will send the cars back to their bases for servicing and updating, while leaving spares and equipment in Spain.

All schedules for bringing on and trying new parts will have to change, while everyone also misses out on the opportunity to test Pirelli tyres in hot weather, which could make Melbourne something of a lottery.

Bahrain was also due to see an FIA-sanctioned test of the moveable rear wing in its race format, and a formal discussion of the Sporting Working Group about how the new rules have worked out.

The Bahrain GP is now officially off, although it remains to be seen if and when it will be rescheduled.

The Crown Prince said this afternoon: “We felt it was important for the country to focus on immediate issues of national interest. Bahrain’spriority is on overcoming tragedy, healing divisions and rediscovering the fabric that draws this country together to remind the world of the very best that Bahrain is capable of as a nation once again united.”

An official statement from the organisers reads as follows:

The Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) today announced that the Kingdom of Bahrain would withdraw from hosting this year’s F1 Grand Prix race so that the country can focus on its process of national dialogue.

Last Friday, Bahrain’s Crown Prince – HRH Prince Salman bin Hamad Al-Khalifa – initiated a new national dialogue involving all sections of Bahraini society in order to resolve the current political situation in the Kingdom.  The Crown Prince informed Formula One’s Bernie Ecclestone of the BIC’s decision by telephone earlier today.

HRH Prince Salman said:

“At the present time the country’s entire attention is focused on building a new national dialogue for Bahrain.

“Although Bernie Ecclestone had graciously made clear that a decision on the race was entirely Bahrain’s to make and was not yet required, we felt it was important for the country to focus on immediate issues of national interest and leave the hosting of Bahrain’s Formula 1 race to a later date.

“I would like to extend my personal gratitude to Bernie Ecclestone for his support and understanding.

“After the events of the past week, our nation’s priority is on overcoming tragedy, healing divisions and rediscovering the fabric that draws this country together; reminding the world of the very best that Bahrain is capable of as a nation once again united.”

Chairman of the Bahrain International Circuit, Zayed R. Alzayani said:

“Bahrain’s Grand Prix is a time of celebration and hosting the race is a source of great pride for Bahrain and Bahrainis.  It is a showcase to the world and we look forward to welcoming the teams and drivers and everyone involved in Formula One back to Bahrain in the very near future.

“I hope that F1 and our friends around the world will understand our decision at this difficult time.”

Following the Crown Prince’s decision, Bernie Ecclestone commented:

“It is sad that Bahrain has had to withdraw from the race, we wish the whole nation well as they begin to heal their country.

“The hospitality and warmth of the people of Bahrain is a hallmark of the race there, as anyone who has been at a Bahrain Grand Prix will testify.  We look forward to being back in Bahrain soon.”

No decision has been made on a new date for the rescheduling of the race, which was due to take place from March 11th to 13th.

An impeccable source has told me that the Bahrain GP has been postponed – rather than cancelled.

Incredibly, because of the commercial implications Bernie Ecclestone is going to try to squeeze it into the schedule at the end of the year.

The only realistic option is on November 20, after Abu Dhabi – which means either there  will be a bizarre triple header with Brazil, or Ecclestone will have to move Interlagos back to December 4. Bahrain cannot run in the gap between India and Abu Dhabi because new races have to be stand alone in their first year, because of question marks over how long it takes freight to get in and out.

One compromise could be that Bernie moves Brazil anyway to create breathing space, and if Bahrain is still not viable for November 2o, the season will just end a week later than planned.

Of course there’s an outside chance that Bernie will claim back the Indian GP date of October 30 – and give the organisers an extra year to get ready…

Teams are discussing the implications in a conference call this afternoon.

More later…

Once again the Australian GP has come under fire from a local politician, and we can surely expect a swift reaction from Bernie Ecclestone.

Bernie was quick to respond after recent criticism from the mayor of Melbourne. The race has now been attacked by MP Michael Danby, whose Melbourne Ports constituency includes Albert Park.

Reuters reports that Danby told parliament: “The Grand Prix may have been a good deal in 1996, when it cost the government only $1.7 million; but, with falling crowd numbers and taxpayers footing a $50 million-a-year bill, the government should cut its losses and walk away.

“Rising costs, dwindling crowds, fed-up local residents, an ambivalent Melbourne mayor… to me, everything points to Melbourne saying ‘thanks for the memories’ but gracefully declining to renew the Grand Prix contract.”

Coming so soon after the mayor’s attack, Danby’s comments are bound to raise the ire of Ecclestone – who is no doubt already investigating alternative venues, if indeed he believes Australia it still worth pursuing.

Bernie Ecclestone has told the BBC that he is relying on the Crown Prince to tell him whether it is safe for the Bahrain GP to go ahead. He added that a decision would be made on Tuesday.

The mood in the country has changed into one of optimism over the last 24 hours. Protesters re-took Pearl Square after the military withdrew, and Crown Prince Salman ibn Hamad ibn Isa Al Khalifa has attempted to calm the situation by agreeing to talk to opposition leaders.

The Crown Prince, who is the man behind the GP and Bernie’s main point of contact, is also the Supreme Commander of the Bahraini defence force.

“He will know whether it’s safe for us to be there,” Ecclestone told the BBC. “I’ve no idea. I’m not there, so I don’t know. We won’t advise people to go unless it’s safe.”

As expressed previously on this blog, it seems that the bottom line is who blinks first in terms of a cancellation – and what the commercial implications of that will be.

While the more upbeat mood may be perfectly timed in terms of the deadline Bernie gave for the decision, there is clearly no guarantee that the situation won’t change once again, especially given the lengthy time scale involved.

Team personnel beginning heading out to the test as early as Saturday February 26, and some will still be there until as late as  Tuesday March 15, a couple of days after the race. The risks inherent in assuming now that there will be no further trouble over that 16-17 day period are pretty obvious.

Meanwhile the warnings against “non-essential” travel issued by many governments remain in place.

One report today says that the teams may not have an issue with insurance unless there is a definitive ban. However the BBC’s travel expert confirmed on TV yesterday that for most normal travel insurance – the type that many non-team personnel will have – would be invalidated if a warning was ignored.

Reports in UK newspapers this morning suggest that the teams are not keen to go. On Friday they had a two-hour meeting in Barcelona, but the politically correct view – as expressed afterwards by spokesman Christian Horner – was that it was down to FOM and the FIA.

There has no word from the FIA since Jean Todt spoke to the Irish media at an FIA safety function early last week, before the situation became more crticial. However the FIA President is presumably being kept abreast of developments by Sheikh Abdullah Bin Isa Al-Khalifa, President of the Bahrain Motor Federation. He was one of Todt’s key allies in his election campaign, helping to pull in votes from the Middle East. He was invited to host one of the first WMSC meetings under the new president, in March 2010.

Aside from Horner’s remarks, there has been no official comment either from FOTA, whose chairman Martin Whitmarsh is in an awkward position, since McLaren is 42% owned by the Bahraini government. The team is also planning a major display of historic F1 cars, as well as promotion for the MP4-12C road car, at Sakhir. Clearly the company is counting on the Middle East for a lot of sales.

Leaving aside the safety issue, there remains the question of whether it is appropriate for F1 to be in Bahrain so soon after this week’s events. It would probably be fair to assume that many sponsors will not be keen to have a high profile presence, and that entertaining of guests – at what is one of the busiest and most lucrative races of the year for the Paddock Club – may be cut back. It also remains to be seen whether the media personalities who regularly attend the race as guests of the royal family are as keen to go this year.

Meanwhile the BBC’s Jake Humphrey made the following observation on Twitter this morning: “For those asking. Just because the race goes ahead doesn’t mean the BBC have to be there. We’ll make a call, and I know what mine will be…”

Fernando Alonso was in a good mood at the end of his two-day stint of testing at Barcelona, despite Ferrari losing some time to technical gremlins today.

Despite that he still ran 90 laps and set the third best time of the day, behind Sebastian Vettel and Jaime Alguersuari.

“One of the mechanics said to me that when things go well in Barcelona, we don’t win the championship, while if we have problems here, then it’s a different story,” said Alonso. “Let’s hope that’s really the case! I still believe that, at the moment the Red Bull is the strongest car, but there are at least four other teams – us, McLaren, Mercedes and Renault – that are capable of fighting for the wins. It is always very difficult to assess the results from testing: it only takes ten kilos more or less fuel or for worn tyres to be used at any one point in the day, to make a difference that can amount to seconds.”

Alonso made some interesting comments about tyres: “Here again we saw degradation similar to what we had noticed both in Valencia and Jerez at the first two tests. If we had to race at the Catalunya Circuit tomorrow, we would need three or even four stops to finish the race, however it will not be just a case of changing the way we tackle the race, but also the entire weekend track time, from free practice through to qualifying. Tyre wear will definitely create the best overtaking opportunities. If you find yourself fighting against a driver on tyres that are at the start or the end of their stint, the performance difference could be very big, which would make for overtaking, even more definitely than using KERS and the moveable rear wing.”

Alonso didn’t want to be drawn on the Bahrain issue: “It is hard for us to state a clear cut position, because in the end we only know as much as you journalists, given we are following the situation through the media. We have to wait a few more days and then the powers that be will make a decision.”

With country after country now officially warning its citizens to avoid all but ‘essential’ travel to Bahrain, the GP has become completely untenable as there are obvious insurance issues.

With such warnings in place it would be virtually impossible for team principals and media outlets to send employees to Bahrain, and clearly there will be no spectators and no sponsor guests from outside the country. This is the age of health and safety, after all.

The bottom line is that these warnings may provide the ‘force majeure’ that allows Bernie and the curiously silent FIA to make a call while allowing the Bahrainis to save some face.

But they have to do it today, and not dick about and wait until next week. It’s clear that the longer they leave it, the worse it will be for the image of F1, which has taken a battering in recent days.

Yesterday British actor Stephen Fry wrote in a Tweet: “Can’t quite believe that with the ruthless treatment of Bahrain’s protesters Ecclestone is talking about Grand Prix prospects there.”

Bernie may take the views of a showbiz personality with a pinch of salt, but the point is that Fry has 2.2 million followers on Twitter, and he reflects the opinions of many people around the world who have little or no interest in F1 – and indeed the opinions of many F1 fans who think enough is enough.

Here’s a sampling of what governments are saying:

“US citizens are urged to remain alert to local security developments and to be vigilant regarding their personal security.”

“If travelling within Bahrain, British nationals should maintain a high level of security awareness, particularly in public places and on major highways, and avoid large crowds and demonstrations.”

“Canadians are strongly advised to maintain a high level of vigilance and personal security awareness at all times. Caution should be particularly exercised in areas known to be frequented by foreigners.”

“Australians in Bahrain should exercise extreme caution and minimise their travel around the island. The situation in Bahrain remains volatile with reports that the Army has used lethal force against demonstrators. Further demonstrations are likely to occur in the coming days and could turn violent.”