20-06-2005, 07:11 PM
I personally think that will be the end of F1 in the USA. Even the dignitaries walked of the podium !
Quote:US motor racing fans weren't waiting around to see which Ferrari came out on top in the US Grand Prix on Sunday after a failure to sort out concerns over the safety of Michelin tyres saw only six cars start the race.
Andy Stevens and Keith Murphy, who had spent several hundred dollars apiece to come to the race from Iowa, were heading for the exit of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway before the race was half over with "f**k-you Michelin" scribbled on their T-shirts.
"We don't even know what's happening, we just know we're mad at Michelin," Stevens said.
Both men were aware of the tyre safety concerns raised earlier in the week when Ralf Schumacher crashed in practice after a Michelin tyre failure.
But they were mystified on Sunday as all 20 qualified cars lined up on the starting grid, before the 14 cars on Michelin tyres pulled into the pits after the warm-up lap.
"They didn't tell what was happening over the loudspeakers," Murphy said. "There was the warm-up lap, and then all of a sudden there were only six cars.
"We didn't come here to see a Ferrari practice. We came across the country to see the race."
Phyllis Carmack travelled from Louisiana for the race, but she too had seen enough by the halfway stage.
"From my understanding, Bernie Ecclestone has been trying to bring Formula One to the United States," she said. "This isn't going to help.
"They knew this was coming the past couple of days," Carmack added. "I feel they should have done something about it before the start of the race. I am so disappointed."