The prospect of a return of refueling has sparked questions about its reason and cost
What do you think about the idea of bringing back refueling ?
Not much to be honest. I'm not surprised by the idea, but I wonder what it would add... More excitement? Light cars at the end of a stint? I believe there are other priorities, like banning those radio messages which just give drivers a bad image, as if they were puppets controlled by engineers. All it does is discredit F1 in the eyes of the general public.
Has Formula 1 become unmanageable? It appears to be in search of itself, unable to reach the right decisions...
It's a very complex sport and not easy to regulate. The best decisions were made back when F1 was managed like a dictatorship, with [Jean-Marie] Balestre and then [Max] Mosley who imposed their views on safety while Bernie [Ecclestone] took care of the business. Today, too many diverging interests are focused on power and they let the engineers define the rules. It's all a bit self-destructive.
Sometimes I watch a race on TV, just like a normal fan and get bored. At the time of the Australian Grand Prix, we were in Miami for the Formula E race and we followed what was going on on the internet and through social media. It was crazy, all the information was negative: just 15 cars on the grid, Manor was out, Sauber was in court, Honda was having huge difficulties, etc... F1 just shot itself in the foot!
What about customer cars, one of the ideas discussed by the Strategy Group but which only gives weight to the top teams?
It's an old debate which I'm very familiar with because back when I bought Ligier, the car was actually a Benetton... Formula One's DNA means that the teams design and manufacture a chassis, although a common platform could be shared in order to reduce costs, and with limited aerodynamics as I stressed earlier. Right now, when you look at Manor, F1 is a two-tier system which is not desirable either.
Manor's level of performance is comparable to GP2, and typifies F1's two-tier system
