Mario Andretti says he still enjoys watching Formula One.
Past F1 champion and American racing legend says Mercedes' dominance is a good thing
One the eve of planned massive changes to the speed and look of the cars in Formula One, 75-year-old Mario Andretti is warning the series against going overboard as it looks to the future.
"Formula
One is a great product," Andretti, the 1978 F1 champion, told Germany's
Auto Motor und Sport. "It keeps its integrity because of the
technology. That's the trademark.
"(The technology) is why the fans love Formula One.
Motorsport in general is expensive, and sometimes (F1) goes too far, so
every now and then the sport needs to adapt. But I say adapt, not do
things differently just for the sake of change. No racing series is
perfect. There is no magic key, so please don't try to reinvent the
wheel. That would be the worst thing they could do. It's exactly the
mistake IndyCar made. They betrayed their roots and introduced things
that do not fit with the series."
Some, however,
believe the racing is better elsewhere than in F1, such as in IndyCar,
where Andretti's grandson Marco is now a race winner.
Andretti's son Michael, now an IndyCar team owner, raced in Formula One in 1993.
When
asked if F1 has something to learn in that area from IndyCar, Mario
Andretti said, "It's the opposite. Everyone is talking about Mercedes'
dominance and that it is wrecking the sport, but I think it's produced
some great stories. Now everyone is watching Ferrari to see if they can
close the gap.
"The Grands Prix in Hungary and
Singapore showed that Mercedes can no longer afford to make the
slightest mistake, and as a fan I love that."
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