Bahrain GP situation: postponed, reinstated, cancelled

[bhall]

Tell that to the Iraqis.

The point I was making is that hosting a grand prix isn't a congeniality award.

[SeijaKessen]

Tell that to the Iraqis.

The point I was making is that hosting a grand prix isn't a congeniality award.

It's a rather poor example, thanks.

[Robbobnob]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/16962812

Fresh calls to boycott the Bahrain GP

With such political unrest and uncertainty about the GP, I am surprised it hasnt been dropped / swapped with another.

[Hail22]

With British MPs weighing in it may seem better for the sport to drop it.

Remember the Government as much as we hate may try to hurt Formula 1 by lifting taxes on higher octane fuels for motor sports which would play into the FIAs hands by introducing electric Formula 1 cars....

[Cold Fussion]

With British MPs weighing in it may seem better for the sport to drop it.

Remember the Government as much as we hate may try to hurt Formula 1 by lifting taxes on higher octane fuels for motor sports which would play into the FIAs hands by introducing electric Formula 1 cars....

What business is it of British MP's and Lord's where Formula 1 holds their events? So long as it is safe for the teams and the media then it shouldn't matter what despot is running the country. Formula 1 is a sport and as such it should not be political, denying a country their gp because of poor human rights is a slippery slope.

[horse]

What business is it of British MP's and Lord's where Formula 1 holds their events? So long as it is safe for the teams and the media then it shouldn't matter what despot is running the country. Formula 1 is a sport and as such it should not be political, denying a country their gp because of poor human rights is a slippery slope.

Pfft. So by holding the event in the country you effectively condone the action of the Bahrainy government.

Even in a business sense, as an F1 sponsor, do you wish to be associated with condoning such violence? I think not.

[Cold Fussion]

How does holding and event there condone violence? Most nations have embassies in all these countries which we would consider despotic and backwards by western standards, does this condone violence? Were the Olympics in Moscow and Beijing a condoning of violence? You seem to be implying that the only way to deal with these countries is to be like how the USA dealed with China pre 71/72.

[Richard]

Two issues make this relevant to F1:

Firstly, safety of teams and fans. Bahrain is a small place and last time around there were protests and machine gun fire in the city centre. This has continued on and off since then, so could easily re-occur if protests flare up when F1 comes to town.

Secondly, a large number of circuit staff were summarily dismissed from their jobs on account of their ethnicity. A report I heard on the radio (or perhaps TV)interviewed many of them and they have not got their jobs back.

Finally, 9 out of 12 teams are based in the UK, so it is highly relevant to the UK parliament.

[ESPImperium]

Ive said it before and ill say it again. It will be canceled again this year and replaced with a second in season all team test most probably back at Jerez or posibly at Paul Ricard for a track that can simulate Monaco and Montreals conditions with multi layouts.

Its too late i think for it to be replaced with a GP, say a Turkish GP.

A test or two would be much more benificial for teams and drivers, if they can aggree that a test or tests can be used for young development drivers and for Pirellis 2013 development rubbe it would be more than ideal for me.

[Giblet]

Not only that but they jailed 24 doctors for months because they helped protesters who had been shot.

If I was a driver, I would think twice about the best doctors being available to me if I was to get in a serious accident.

The race has always been a show for royalty, with very few regular folks showing up to fill the empty seats.

Since the race there is barely for the people there, and the race doesn't do much for entertainment race wise, why bother?

[Shrieker]

Its too late i think for it to be replaced with a GP, say a Turkish GP.

But I'd still say there's time -organisation wise- to hold the GP here in Istanbul. The major concern here would be the politics involved with negotiations and all that kind of stuff...

[Hail22]

...

But beats the bejesus out of Bahrain I hope FOM and the FIA can it.

[bhall]

If a boycott is implemented solely due to legitimate concerns for team/spectator safety, then, by all means, this race should be boycotted. However, I cannot emphasize enough that the purpose of such a boycott should be limited to safety concerns alone.

Otherwise, F1, and those who cover/follow F1, are forsaking the single most effective weapon available to combat the social injustices occurring in Bahrain: the world's attention.

[Lycoming]

I certainly think the current situation in the country warrants boycotting it on at least safety grounds.

Even that aside, I think there would be a significant though somewhat controllable amount of public outlash if they were to go there. My personal opinion is that such a politically unstable region is unfit to host a major sporting event, which is also a major tourist attraction.

Its worth noting that the US state department has issued a travel alert for bahrain. currently only 7 countries have travel alerts issued to them, and one of them is Japan, which is not on there for political reasons and doesn't really count. I don't think that sounds like the kind of country that is ready to host a grand prix.

However, on the surface, it looks reasonably tame, hence why there is debate as to whether or not they should go, and why there are indeed currently scheduled to go. this is the scary part for me, because it means that they might actually go through with it, and I'm really not sure thats in anybody's best interest.

[Shrieker]

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