09/08/2006
NEWS STORY
It is a fact of life that the media will be biased in favour of sportsman from its own country, and (seemingly) nowhere else is that true than in Great Britain, and in particular England.
Ahead of the recent World Cup, the media - newspapers, TV and Radio - was working the nation into a frenzy convincing it that "our boys" had a chance, that a repeat of 1966 was possible. Whereas, anyone with half a brain could see that in addition to a crap manager, blindly backed by an equally crap, and somewhat sleazy, Football Association, not to mention a squad of players of dubious talent, whose main ambition is to how best to line their pockets, it is surprising the team got as far as it did.
As the England team returned home empty handed, certainly in terms of silverware, or even medals, yet again, the media turned on all involved, before searching for the next sporting hero(es) it could sell to the public.
Our overpaid, self indulgent footballers had screwed up, so the media attempted to sell us Tennis, whereas the main hope is a Scot, and therefore British, Rugby, Cricket, Golf, Athletics... you name it.
The sad reality is however, that other than the odd win, and despite having invented most of these sports, we - the English - are not really much good at them. We probably could be, but discipline and commitment has given way to 'in your face' greed.
When Jenson Button came into Formula One in 2000, he was immediately the new darling, the golden boy, of the British media. Young, good-looking, loved his Dad, and took part in a daredevil sport in which people get killed.
Hardly had he climbed into the cockpit of his WilliamsF1 however, when the British media began dishing the dirt, digging into his personal life, questioning why he'd dumped his girlfriend, why he was heading off to Monaco, why he'd bought the yacht. For the other side of the British media is that once it has turned you into a hero, it will work flat-out to destroy you, nobody is safe.
Finally, last weekend, in his 114th Grand Prix, Jenson Button survived the mayhem, drove a super smooth race of (almost) Alain Prost proportions, and took the chequered flag, to score his first Formula One victory.
It was to be expected - dreaded? - that ITV commentator James Allen would have an orgasm as Button crossed the line, though his sincerity, certainly compared to the lump-in-the-throat rantings of Murray Walker, seemed dubious, while ITV finally, genuinely, had reason to justify its constant overselling of the boy from Frome.
More interesting however, was the British press on Monday, and even Tuesday, when seemingly every journalist had an opinion, on what appears to have been the English highlight of the sporting summer. Journalists who have previously treated F1 with the contempt it so clearly deserves were suddenly waxing lyrical.
A couple of years ago, and this is a fact, the British media was about to give up on F1 big time, as Michael Schumacher won race-after-race-after race. It had been OK in 1992 when "Our Nige" was setting new records, "Our Nige" was a Brit, this other guy's German… in an Italian car. In 2004, Editors called time on their F1 journos, warning them that sending them all over the world to report on another Schumacher-Ferrari victory wasn't cost effective. A lot of journos were worried.
Button's win makes everything right again, we have a new hero, and, in the eyes of the English press, the first World Championship title will soon follow.
One writer who took time out from his normal duties to note Jenson's win, is Des Kelly of the Daily Mail. Unlike many of his colleagues however, Mr Kelly does not fall over himself, gushing at the Englishman's achievement.
Having watched the race, or at least heard about it, or maybe merely read the reports, Mr Kelly dredges up an idea first suggested, and almost instantly dismissed, by 5-time GP winner, John Watson. The Ulsterman once suggested that races could be "livened up" by placing water sprinklers around the track, to be turned on when races become processional - which at many venues would mean the very moment the red lights go out.
Refusing to rise to the dizzy euphoric heights of his fellow journos, Mr Kelly also pointed out that "before anyone gets too carried away with his (Button's) success, it is worth remembering that his solitary triumph now puts him on a par with the likes of Lee Wallard, Pat Flaherty and Troy Ruttman.
Had he done just a little more research, Mr Kelly would have discovered that Lee Wallard contested just two rounds of the World Championship (Indianapolis 1950 and 1951). However this was when the Indianapolis 500 counted towards the Formula One World Championship, and most F1 fans tend not to count the eleven times the race was included. Same goes for Flaherty, who contested the Indianapolis 500 six times, while Troy Ruttman, other than seven appearances at Indianapolis, did indeed contest two Grands Prix, the French and German races in 1958. That said, he failed to start the Nurburgring event.
Other than Wallard, Flaherty and Ruttman, of who Mr Kelly says; "otherwise known as 'Who?", he mentions Jean-Carlo Baghetti (sic).
We can only think that he is referring to Giancarlo Baghetti, who had the distinction of winning his very first World Championship Grand Prix (France 1961). If Mr Kelly is suggesting that Giancarlo's win was a fluke, a win 'lucked into', he should note that in the weeks preceding the Grand Prix, the Italian won two non-championship F1 races.
Giancarlo Baghetti, is part of F1 history, and certainly deserves better than to sneeringly be referred to as "who".
No doubt, should Jenson fail to win in Turkey, Mr Kelly will be convinced he's right.