27/07/2005
NEWS STORY
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When Bernie Ecclestone phoned Chris Balfe on Wednesday afternoon, and opened the conversation with the words "number two", the Pitpass editor began to fear for the F1 supremo's sanity.
As it happened, Ecclestone was referring to the two qualifying options that F1 fans have been voting for on at Ecclestone's F1 website.
Knowing that editor Balfe had been less than complimentary about both of the proposed formats, having described them as "ludicrous", Ecclestone sought an explanation and suggestions as to other formats that might work - which had the (normally) garrulous Mr Balfe totally lost for words. Indeed one might say that Mr Balfe 'bottled it' and consequently said (meekly) that he favoured option two.
Referring to Pitpass' recent Talking Point, Balfe remarked that it was clear that race fans have as much of a problem agreeing on issues as team bosses.
Ecclestone revealed that like many race fans he preferred the old 'free for all' that saw the great adversaries go out for last minute banzai laps, Ayrton Senna and Mika Hakkinen immediately springing to mind.
However, the fact that all TV viewers got to see for the first half hour was a couple of Minardis, meant that a change was needed.
According to Ecclestone, the poll on F1.com, which is now closed, was split "virtually 50/50".
Asked which option he thought we'd probably see in 2006, Ecclestone said: "I would be surprised if it isn't number two".
"You have to ask yourself, what are we trying to achieve," said Ecclestone. "The answer is that we want to see teams have to run for an hour."
If it is decided that number two is the favoured solution, the proposal will be put to the F1 Commission.
Having (apparently) sorted out qualifying, Ecclestone and Balfe discussed a number of other issues in an attempt to put the world to rights, much of it was very much off the record, but we can say that Mr E is not the Tony Blair fan that the media would have you believe.
Referring to a recent article in which his daughters revealed that he does the washing up, and most of the tidying up around the house, Ecclestone laughed. "So what, it's true," he said.
"We live in the kitchen," he continued. "Despite what people think I enjoy the simple life. We've had the big place with fifteen bedrooms, servants and all that, but it's not me, a house is not a home.
"I'm not impressed by flash people," he added, "it's not what you've got that impresses me, " it's who you are."
For those that have forgotten what option two was, it comprised a sixty minute session. After 15 minutes, the five slowest cars would retire from the session and would fill 16th to 20th on the grid. After a further 15 minutes, the five cars slowest during that period (times cannot be carried over from the first 15 minutes) would also retire from the session. They would qualify 11th to 15th on the grid.
In the final 30 minutes the remaining 10 cars would compete for first to tenth places on the grid, based on the best times set in that period (times cannot be carried over from the first 30 minutes). Drivers would be allowed to run as many laps as they wish in each period, and there would be no fuel restrictions, with cars allowed to refuel during and after the session.