As it seeks to recoup the money it laid out in buying Formula One, and then set about making the sort of profits CVC could only dream of, Liberty Media is planning some major changes for the sport.

The engine rules and the division of the prize pot aside, Liberty is looking at how to not only keep current fans happy but win over many millions of new ones.

It is hoped that taking the sport into new territories - Vietnam for example - will not only mean more race promotion fees to add to the coffers but win over millions of new fans in the region... ignoring the fact that such projects spectacularly failed in Korea, India, Turkey...

As part of its masterplan, Liberty is looking to seriously revamp the way the sport is delivered to the world, ironic really when at one time Bernie Ecclestone's TV coverage was setting the standard for all sports.

In recent weeks a number of deals have been announced that essentially see the sport moving in the same direction as it looks to be heading in the UK, with live coverage only available on pay-per-view, while free-to-air fans are left with the scraps.

Furthermore, the sport is looking to advance in areas Ecclestone gave scant regard to, delivering race coverage and more into fans homes and to their various devices courtesy of its own streaming service.

Last week saw Liberty in a number of meetings including the teams, race promoters and TV broadcasters, not forgetting the infamous Strategy Group.

Though some of the plans have been quicker to leak out than others, a picture is beginning to emerge, and for some it will not be pretty.

First off, it is being proposed that all sessions, including the race, at a majority of the races, be moved back by an hour, with races scheduled to start at 15:10 as opposed to the current 14:00.

Ignoring the fear that the extra ten minutes might allow more travesties such as Michael Buffer and his Austin fiasco, one can only presume it is for comfort breaks and additional "words from out sponsors", while the extra hour is intended to make the timing more 'viewer friendly'.

Thus far it is thought the timing change mostly applies to European races, but while it is said Singapore and Abu Dhabi will be unaffected, Bahrain is likely to become a full night race.

However - and this is where it gets really worrying - while we can expect to hear an improved sound this year - courtesy of the repositioning of microphones on the car as opposed to changing the engine formula - there is talk of TV camera angles being adapted to make the cars look quicker and thereby more exciting.

Also - and those fans of a certain age and high blood pressure should look away now - there is even talk of a music soundtrack being played at certain parts of the race along with an in-screen highlights display... which in the case of Abu Dhabi last year would have involved Chopin and a blank screen.

More will become clear in the weeks and months ahead, but as Liberty's vast army of marketing men get to work, perhaps one should be heading to Amazon and investing in a few box sets for Sunday afternoons. We've recently purchased Gomorrah, Follow the Money and Spiral… when we've finished them we'll be happy to swap.

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READERS COMMENTS

1. Posted by Liam III, 29/01/2018 19:08

"The cars are actually breathtakingly fast- if you would just hold the camera still while a car darts thought the S-curves. The times when they hold the camera still is THE ONLY time the cars appear fast. Stop panning with the cars so we can actually show our friends what G-forces are being achieved. "

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2. Posted by Pipsary, 28/01/2018 18:38

"F1 in the 80's & 90's was watched by the millions and then they tried to improve things for the spectator! It didn't work. The armchair fans watched it because it was good, it was free and it was part of every motorsport sporting fans weekend.

So now we have something that revolves around coverage dependent on the the country they race in or if they have a driver from that country, and then to top it all off you now have to pay for it..

F1 is trying to fix something that wasn't broke but now is "Shattered".

The days of Murray and James were brilliant and Martin Brundle and the team are now fantastic but! "

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3. Posted by george, 28/01/2018 2:24

"The fact I still read Pitpass, if less frequent then before, means I still have a latent interest in F1, but it's a nostalgic interest. F1, under Liberty Media is dead, even if it would become a commercial success, which is vey doubtful. Wonder who is going to pay for pay per view in Vietnam.
Truly, I don't watch anymore, it's to painful to know what was once and is now. And besides Alonso and a few others, not including Verstappen in my opinion, there are no more racers, just operational managers behind a steering wheel."

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4. Posted by Joop deBruin, 27/01/2018 22:00

"I detest that soundtrack of farting they play now.

Oh wait! That truly is the sound of the cars and not hippos with gas?"

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5. Posted by GrahamG, 27/01/2018 16:48

"Gave up watching artificial F1 a couple of years ago after following the sport for 60 years. I have disposable income likely to be influenced by sponsors (other than Pirelli who ought to be banned from all motor sport for producing the world's silliest tyres) but simply I'm not watching because of stupid regulations and I'm unwilling to support the inflated lifestyle of the sport's "owners" (not the teams) and TV magnates "

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6. Posted by Steve W, 27/01/2018 15:45

"Think I'll just stick with my PlayStation..."

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7. Posted by Endre, 27/01/2018 15:36

"Back in the days (80's - 90's) I used to get up at 5 or 6 in the morning if I had to just to watch every race live. These days I can rarely convince myself to watch any of these boring, artificial races live, I'd rather record them then watch while skipping 75% of monotony. Make the races pay per view, delay broadcast and I am for sure done with this crap that is sold as F1 these days.

I really wish some race track owners would get together and start a fresh new single seater championship with much simpler cars and back to the roots of the sport."

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8. Posted by Ro, 27/01/2018 14:46

"Just bought myself a Scalectrix set.....the sound is better, no adverts, cheap as chips and there is more overtaking.....Get real Liberty Media....you bought high, you will sell low once the spectators and viewers dwindle....."

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9. Posted by Motorsport-fan, 27/01/2018 14:22

"Is F1 going the same way as WRC, whats WRC I hear you say."

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10. Posted by Burton, 27/01/2018 12:56

"Late starts means it takes only an incident or two for visibility issues, half-races and half-points...absolute genius!"

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