Ferrari chief underlines need for 'F1 revolution'

Ferrari Team Principal Maurizio Arrivabene has joined Niki Lauda in his belief that Formula One must work to improve the spectacle in an attempt to re-gain interest.

As many blamed the new power units for the reduced spectacle in the sport, teams have recently started work on trying to boost the raw and highly technological image of F1 while retaining its efficient engines.

"I share Niki's view that Formula 1 needs to be more spectacular and I believe that the risk he evokes of the sport losing fans is something that has unfortunately already happened," Arrivabene told the official Ferrari website.

"By 2017, I too would like to see cars that win over the fans, with cars that they can get closer to and that are aesthetically more appealing, maybe even producing a noise that gets your hair standing on end, like that produced by a heavy metal band.

"However, I don't think a simple evolution is enough in this case. Instead, a real revolution is called for, with significant and radical changes.

"By that I mean more power, higher speeds, not necessarily involving the use of more fuel, but definitely applying a cost reduction to those components that are of little interest to the general public."

Team are already considering the possibility of increasing power to around 1000bhp, albeit that there is far from a consensus on how exactly to attain this goal. Propositions from various teams ranged from V8's and standard ERS systems to a simple increase of the fuel usage limit.

Apart from the requested technical changes, Arrivabene suggested F1 should get closer to its fans, possibly opening up by holding pre-race events on Thursdays of a Grand Prix weekend, outside the circuit in a public area.