14/05/2018
NEWS STORY
Those of you of a nervous disposition when it comes to the world of marketing, or indeed those of you who hanker for the good old days, when the helmets were cork and elbows-out racing was just that, had best look away now.
Speaking to Sky Sports ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix, F1's commercial boss, Sean Bratches explained why the sport will be such a good fit for Miami... and much, much more.
"We're off to a great start this season, a lot of unpredictability on the grid, we've seen some great racing, exciting times, and I think from a commercial standpoint we're on a journey.
"We're on the front side of it," he added, "there's a lot to do, but we feel we've accomplished a lot and we're looking forward to the future."
Asked about Miami, he replied: "It went well, we've been working with the with the different constituents in Miami for about a year, we're trying to see if there's something smart to do that makes sense and minimises the disruption from a residents standpoint and business standpoint in an iconic city.
"I don't know if there's a city on the planet that aligns with our brand more than Miami," he continued. "We're both about celebrity, about glamour, about fashion, we're about art, we're about digital, technology. We both have great sporting histories, so we think it's a good brand alignment.
"We received unanimous approval, both in the city and the county, Miami Dade County level, and what that really means is that it gives the City Manager the authority to enter into negotiations with us. So we've got some wood to chop but we're encouraged and we want to work with the City, the Port Authority and the relevant constituents to make sure we put on an event that works for everyone."
"Asked if this might impact Silverstone, whose future beyond 2019 is very much in doubt, circuit owners, the British Racing Drivers' Club, having ended their contract, he said: "I don't know how we made the leap from Miami to Silverstone but we... Silverstone is the heritage of this sport, it's at the nucleus of what we're about.
"We continue to have productive discussions," he added. "We're looking forward to having a fantastic Grand Prix there this year, and 2019, and we are encouraged about the prospect of continuing racing there."
Referring to the Fan Zone, he said: "We're trying to pivot Formula One from a motorsport company to a media and entertainment brand. We're trying to be very much a fan first focussed entity, and what you're seeing today is some of the perspectives that we saw last year, and bringing some of our vision into form, so to speak. We're encouraged, and the reaction has been fantastic but there's a lot more to come. These are things we want to do at every single Grand Prix, we want to be additive and continue to find what works, what doesn't work.
"We're becoming a researched focus entity as well," he continued. "We have sensors all around the Grand Prix which track people's wireless, determine footfall, to identify the best places to locate festival activities, merchandise tents, things of that nature. We work in the most technologically sophisticated sport on the planet so we're trying to conform some of our research in the same way."