My fascinating and educational weekend in Korea

Hi Jake,

As a huge fan of Kimi Raikkonen, I must say he also won the title in his debut season for Ferrari 2007.

Great work by the BBC again this weekend. The six and a half hours flew by.

See you in Brazil.

Enjoyable read as always Jake, however I was disappointed by the coverage this weekend.

The focus on McLaren was way too much. The Mission Control stuff was interesting, but the other McLaren coverage should have been appropriately reduced. No need to ask Martin Whitmarsh, Lewis, Jenson the same questions already answered in Mission Control pieces. There was times when I wondered if Ferrari was still in the title fight as when you were not discussing McLaren it was all Red Bull.

The Forum must have been over 70% McLaren talk when Ferrari took first and third in the race. When you did finally get to Ferrari you immediately dragged up the negative team order story. Disappointing.

And as a final point, the whole Jenson supporting Lewis story that was discussed ad nauseaum is completely moot - when was the last time that Jenson was ahead on pace to be in a position to move over for Lewis? A long time ago...

Great blog Jake, keep up the good work. This weekend's GP was a very tense affair, at one point it didn't look like the race was ever going to start, but I do love a bit of drama in the F1 world. The rain definitely kept the drivers on their toes, and now it's so tight at the top I just can't wait for Interlagos!

I really enjoyed the BBC coverage this weekend. I did miss Lee McKenzie though, to e honest Jake she's a bit easier on the eye than you mate!

Well done Jake and the team, superb coverage again despite not knowing how the day would unfold, extending your coverage and not even knowing if we'd have a race!

Thanks for the insignt also into your travels, it was facinating seeing where you stayed and how you got on there.

However, in the actual coverage, I didn't like the McLaren HQ bit...thought it was a boring place, grey walls, it seemed there was no life in there, Couthard whispering in the hallway...didn't do much for me. Otherwise, as ever great that F1 is back in force on the Beeb.

One final thing, Red Bull are VERY foolish not to back Webber now. It all smacks of 1986 and 2007.

I was wondering what distracted you during those all important A'Level years. A girl, perhaps :D

And I was thinking, if Alonso wins the World Championship, does that mean a classic course like Spa will be sacrificed to keep the waste of space that is Valencia?

Finally, doesn't Love Hotel Central, Mokpo, have an airport? If yes, why not use local flights rather than the epic bus trip and if no, how could the PTB possibly have envisioned staging a F1 race somewhere, half way round the world, WITHOUT an airport. I know it's all a bit ecologically incorrect but if they expect a few thousand people to travel round the world every two weeks, surely air travel is a must?

One word of criticism. Please don't get stuck on the obvious questions, particularly when you know no one is going to answer them - Drivers supporting other drivers within a team has got really boring now.

Otherwise cracking coverage as usual - particularly Crofty and Gary Parfett's marathon commentary (I can't listen to the TV commentary any more)

Bring on Brazil

xJess

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Great post Jake!

As for you missing out on being a student, I can tell you that I would kill to be in your position instead of being a university student. Also, I loved the "Schumacher" part, makes me realize how great of an impact one person can have in a sport!

Keep up the great work!

Thoughroughly entertaining blog Jake. I'm 15 and have been pondering over the possibility of becoming a sports journalist. What would you think to be the best way of making a good career in the profession?

Don't want to be negative as I love your F1 coverage but my only complaint this weekend, and indeed this season, would be Legard's commentary.

Ok conditions were poor so that's possibly an excuse, but let's be honest the commentary was woeful. At the start he was completely baffled by what was going on, even mistaking Lewis for Jenson even though they were a few cars apart. Moreover he completely missed Alonso overtaking Lewis after the pitstops.

I'm afraid Legard has been like this all season, often getting over-excited, generally getting things wrong and continually mixing up drivers.

Otherwise, fantastic show as always Jake. Like I say, don't want to be negative but presumably the Beeb is always happy to hear the fans feedback.

Myself and boyfriend were wondering if David Coulthard's actually banned from entering South Korea?

Also, definitely agree with Tazo - would love to be in your position instead of off to a 9am CFD lecture. Hopefully it'll lead to a job in F1 one day though!

i really enjoyed the race on sunday.. it was the most nailbiting finish for ages.

as a lewis/mclaren fan i have no complaints about the coverage, but i agree that it was biased this weekend. i think overall the bbc's coverage has been excellent this season though, and all the teams have had fair treatment.

i also agree with the comment about jonathan legard.. he's not the best F1 commentator, is he? even martin brundle sounds annoyed with him sometimes. ant davidson does a much better job on R5L in my opinion.

@KeithyStewart

Mistakes in F1 Commentary are as legendary as some of the drivers! Murry Walkers Gaffs are looked back upon as comedy gold! Legard does a great job, but to be honest he could do with taking a notepad and pen in with him, Wouldnt do him any harm!

Did DC go to the MTC because he didn't sort his visa out in time?

Hi Jake,

Excellent blog as always and brilliant coverage yet again from the BBC. It was brilliant to see behind the scences at McLaren - still waiting for my visit to their Technology Centre myself as I've been a member of the team for 2 years now, hint, hint.

As for the race it was brilliant. I have never watched the TV for so long. I got up at 5.40am on Sunday and didn't really move again until 11.30am after the Forum. 5.5 hours of TV/F1!

Brilliant result for Lewis really hoping he does it. Simple as it sounds he only needs to win the next 2 races and he'll be the Champion again.

As for Red Bull it was good to see the bad luck move away from McLaren and onto another team - although shame for Mark Webber.

Really, really hoping Alonso doesn't win the Championship this year especially after Germany. However he will now take some beating.

It was also good to see Schumacher finishing 4th.

The final 2 races of the season will be awesome and can't believe the 2010 season is nearing its end.

Roll on Brazil!

Jake - I really must object. Which race were you watching? Nico Rosberg did NOT "crunch into" Mark Webber. It was Mark Webber who did the crunching into Nico who was merely trying to avoid him with his usual brilliantly skilful driving. Also, are my daughter and I the only people who don't want to constantly see and hear about Schmacker?

Great race but coverage was once again very biased. You do have a tendency to be very pro McLaren and Red Bull. Ferrari barely get a look in unless you want to say something negative.....

During his commentary Martin Brundle said that as a Brit, working for the BBC, he wants the Brits to win the races, which is fine on a personal level, but the BBC has to remain objective surely?

Please remember: not everyone watching your coverage supports McLaren and not everyone wants Hamilton or Button to win the Championship.

Hello Jake
Thankyou once again for the insight to the weekend. Good to see you back, with DC not being there to pursue his own belief it looked like Eddie was a man on fire, nobody to criticise his opinions. I do think it was all pathetic to have these drivers sitting on the grid when we saw much worse in 2007 at Fuji. Not only are they bred to race in whatever the conditions throw at them; be it weather or car, but everyone knows that if 24 cars drive around at their full potential under normal racing conditions, the spray and water on the track would decrease over the laps. Driving around slowly behind the safety car doesn't help. These cars' diffusers are the best Hoovers in the world, use them. I also find Peter Sauber's opinion on the unsporting celebrations of Mclaren and Ferrari when Vettel duly blew up, dumbfounded. I think the real unsportsmanlike behaviour was Vettel himself, knowing he was on Pole, he didnt want the race to start and then as soon as the FIA wanted to know about the light he said the race should be stopped, perhaps arguably because he was in the lead. Full marks to Hamilton and Alonso this weekend, Alonso drove very well and Hamilton showed class, grit and determination...fortune favours the brave!

I can see the love-affair with jenson is getting stronger and the rigorous defence of his terrible race is stepping up by the day.

You list those excuses of visibility and rain on the cockpit camera but we know that the cockpit cam is worse than the driver's view as the flatness of the camera lens traps the water. The shape of the driver's helmet makes it easier for the water flow away - even martin said this. And as for the other reasons - well all the other drivers had to cope with the same inc especially Lewis Hamilton. Jenson didnt seem too bad until after his failed pit stop - I personally think jenson was angry & just gave up - His demeanor after getting out of the car certainly pointed to that.

It seems like the beeb F1 team spent most of the time to try their hardest to focus on making excuses for and trying to pick up jenson - whereas if it was Lewis many shreds wouldve been torn out of him. In fact despite the great result for him and bringing himself back in the hunt - hes still being unfairly ribbed again!
You would think Lewis was the one to finish without points!

This kind of race was suppose to be jenson's speciality as well as being constantly labelled as a 'Tyre master' & 'changing conditions specialist' - Jenson's performances as a WC has been poor this season. It only strengthens the talk which have swept around for some time that Jenson is not 'up there' when there is competition and that as good a driver he is, he is very overated. As for the new parts etc....well Im sorry to say that it was jenson's choice...also before quali, he was very happy with his set up and new parts. I just felt that theres too many smoke and mirrors with jenson. Lewis also had similar issues with lack of grip, brake & tyre issues - but still kept control and kept up his laptimes - this made clear the big contrast between both driver abilities & talent.

The coverage you guys give is great but there is one thing that really spoils it - that is the clear favouritism shown towards certain particular drivers or driver, jenson mainly - and the apparent clear resentment of certain others....Schumacher & Hamilton.

BTW jake, noticed again there was another little sly dig at Lewis from you at the end of his interview on the forum - like the one where you commented about his English previously in the season which you again tried to laugh off as a joke - That was below the belt I have to say.
It just seems clear to me that for the beeb team jenson is the fav - which is fine but please remember that Lewis is also British and he gets enough of a bashing from others let alone from the beeb - I just think its a bit out of order and could border on being a little unprofessional. Yes Lewis is younger and a bit more guarded with the media but can you blame him for that? That guy really gets dragged through the bushes by the media just because hes not as accessible, but is that any reason to rib him? Sometimes it just comes across as a witch hunt and can be very uncomfortable to watch as it can even border on bullying.

As mentioned, the overall coverage and presenting is good but is in danger of being overshadowed by the clear display of personal favouritism & opinions - BTW this is just some constructive critisism from a loyal fan who gets up at every moment for every session and stays up to watch every full live coverage.
- I really hope that you can address this with the team as I wouldnt want that to overshadow all of teams' hard work.

On another note:
I have to say that Lee did a fantastic job in your place for japan - she did you proud! But one of the biggest dissapointments has been that since that GP - there has not been full coverage available at all on iplayer due to an aparent technical issue - which the beeb promised to resolve and make available. Please can you advise if at least the pre-race chat can be made available? It just seems quite unfair that the 1st and only full presenting of a GP (pre-race chat) by Lee was not at all available. There were many great interviews and analysis pre race that the beeb F1 team mustve worked very hard to get and considering the time of the GP, there were probably alot of people who couldnt watch the pre-race coverage.
You would certainly be flavour of the month if you pulled some strings just to have that available to view - even on the beeb F1 site. I have enquired about this through the beeb but no response at all - bit dissapointed.

-anyway see you in Interlagos!

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Jake - good post!

I do feel the same way about Ferrari too.. i looked forward to this post and Martin Brudle's review being about Alonso, Massa and Ferrari but it isn't. I think Lewis's race was awesome and has got the coverage it deserved but Alonso's was even better and it has not. I know the feeling with Alonso etc but if we are going to be fair, he is the best driver of this generation, followed very closely by Hamilton. I think Webber and Vettel (Webber even more) are over rated and are not consistently good.. Alonso has proven to be so consistent and as a driver is a guarantee.

regarding you student comment, being a student landed me a 9-6 job... not being one landed you the best job in the world :p

regards

Jake, was Vettel's engine implosion the best retirement you've ever seen, along with the reaction of the respective pit crews. I thought it was similar to the episode of Top Gear when the guys had to buy mid engined Italian supercars for £10K and Clarkson's (badly) rebuilt engine destroyed itself.

It's a shame you didn't get a chance to interview Sutil cos he looked like he was on a demolition derby and as for how many times he kept passing Saubers was ridiculous.

With regards to the start of the race that just built up the tension. Give the Koreans another year to develop the track and surrounds and it will be on a par with Spa or Monza for action.

BTW can you please ask Johnathan Legard to be more observant, Rosberg had passed Lewis two laps before he realised it'd happened.

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May I add that JL missed also Liuzzi on Barrichello even though the replay had been shown on TV 10 mins before?

At least Murray Walker had a palpable, genuine and addictive passion.

JL, on the other hand...

Jake can you please talk to whoever is responsible for the driver tracker appearing on freeview rather than the in-car cameras view ever since Spa? I understand your all very proud of your new toy but come on, there is no way that should take precedence over the in-car view or the alternate commentaries.

And on the biased coverage point - you might find you get more access to Ferrari if you stop bashing them so hard, as a McLaren fan i'm sick of the fawning over Jensen over ALL others when his performance is so so poor.

I missed the interesting part of the race because you moved to BBC2!! Why did you do that?

I heard something about DC not being allowed into Korea because of a VISA issue, may not be true, just one of those internet rumours...

I know there's often more emphasis towards McLaren and Red Bull in the coverage but being at the expense of Ferrari is fine by me. I'm with the team in preferring to see either of the Brits do well. Ferrari dominated for long enough and has received more than it's fair share of coverage.

As for the interviews, and jokes, with the McLaren guys, I don't understand how anyone can get upset. Lewis seems to be a very well rounded, down to earth, and relaxed person. I think it would take a lot more than a few light-hearted comments from the BBC to annoy him.

Personally I like the fact the team and many of the drivers are relaxed around each other and genuinely appear to be having a good time. Come on, it beats the informal, and often by-the-numbers interviews we see in many other sports. Speaking of which, I'd love to see more F1 forums!

As TV viewers we've spent years on end watching the same old faces present chat-shows that are nothing more than publicity outlets for the famous and stepping stones for the presenters. The F1 forum is one of the best chat-shows I've ever seen. More. Much more, please!

The only criticism I would have with the whole coverage, and this dates back years, is that I'd like to see more of the other teams and drivers. I think all the drivers and key team personnel should be interviewed at length throughout the season. With so few drivers actually involved in Formula One, it's a shame so many of them are just names to me.

Also agree with comments around McLaren focus. I was actually fed up of seeing those McLaren PR people hovering about in shot. If they do have to supervise drivers 24hrs (aren't drivers trusted by the teams?) why can they at least have the decency of standing outside camera shot?

Red Bull's PR people are the same, there is one of their girls who never fails to push herself into shot with Vettel/Webber. We want to hear from the drivers, not look at PR people desperate for a bit of self-publicity.

Legard is the only let down of the coverage as far as I'm converned

I'm thinking of creating a Jonathon Legard app for my phone. It'll just be a collection of soundclips that you press, just like the ones you can get for farting.

"That's not what he wanted!"
"This is crucial for the championship!"
"He's gonna hafta do better than that!"
"Oooof!"

See? Then I can be my own BBC F1 commentator.

Nickynak HCAFC wrote:
I really enjoyed the BBC coverage this weekend. I did miss Lee McKenzie though, to e honest Jake she's a bit easier on the eye than you mate

I'll second that, more of Ms McKensie in front of the camera please....

Hey BillFenner1967,
You forgot:
"How/when did that happen?"

reading your blog and following the live text on bbc.co.uk during the races makes me exceedingly envious of the BBC tv coverage. i'm stuck in asia watching the races on star sports, and from the pre-race to the post-race things are terribly uniform throughout the season. steve slater and gary anderson don't do much for me on commentary either!

any chance of buying in to bbc live coverage online?

would also have loved the chance to pull you up for your mclaren bias :)

on the racing, perhaps its time to start scheduling races purely to coincide with the rainy season of each venue!

Great grand prix & great coverage as usual (the Mission Control piece got a bit tedious after a while though to be honest, but nice to see inside the hallowed walls) Well worth staying up for (and just as well I did as the recorder would have missed the crucial last laps due to the switch to BBC2)

But really feel I have to join a lot of others on here in criticising Mr. Legard's woeful commentary. I've lost count this season of the amount of times I've seen a critical overtaking manouevre (such as Rosberg/Alonso on Hamilton this weekend) which he has been completely oblivious to, only to then comment on it two or three laps later. It really takes away from the enjoyment of the race and becomes very frustrating, very quickly.

Can you let us know, as loyal viewers, if the torrent of complaints is being acknowledged?

I'd mute the telly completely if it wasn't for Martin Brundle - the perfect F1 commentator in my opinion : knowledgable, experienced, completely up to speed with the race at all times and always providing that extra insight into track conditions, driver psychology and technical information that just makes F1 even more of a joy to watch.

Kudos to Mr. Brundle, please keep up the great work!!

24. At 12:11pm on 26 Oct 2010, artshade wrote:
I gave up reading this rubbish after the second paragraph. Couldnt care less about a self-important journalist's reasons for becoming a journalist.
Can the BBC get back to proper reporting please?
I'm assuming the chances of this being published are slim.
----------

Or perhaps you could keep your browsing to the news sections of this website? You're currently in the Blogs, nowt here but subjective opinions, speculation and personal stories matey. That is, after all, what a blog is about.


Jake, if you could take a BBC sponsored hosepipe to Interlagos and dowse the track for us would be much appreciated!

Hamilton going wide after the restart and Alonso getting through also caused both of them (including Brundle) some confusion as the comments were "oh and Massa is pushing Hamilton"... not really noticing Hamilton had gone wide and Alonso had gone through.

Come on Alonso!! triple world champion

Jake great blog!

I agree with comment 8, I would much rather have been in your shoes, being hosts for two of the biggest sports in the world (Superbowl!) rather than having gone to Uni.

If there was a way to get from school at 16 to TV without Uni then I would have taken it over any UCAS forms!

Alas there can only be one host of F1, and there are many jobs that a degree is no longer required for! It's very refreshing to see that someone like yourself didn't go to Uni, as a lot of my TV & entertainment heroes did, and I still can't figure out why!

Stepping away from the politics rant...great coverage, I fell asleep during the rain delay, but by some miracle must have been woken up when you said 'Back to Jonathon & Martin' as I opened my eye's I saw the car's pull away for the second time.

Cheers for a good weekend coverage, it pains me to see Jenson the way he was when he spoke to Lee, and I have to admit he has to support Lewis if he can, a true gent and good to see him when he said 'I won't be asked' meaning he know's he'll have to...

Sigh...anyway have fun in Interlagos & Abu Dhabi!

#29 - if you mean the blonde PR girl from Red Bull, I would quite happily see MUCH more or her!

To all those questioning the supposed bias of the BBC - get a life. This happens after every single race and it is getting pretty boring. It is the BRITISH Broadcasting Corporation and McLaren is a British team with British drivers. Why on earth shouldn't they focus on McLaren? As most people watching the coverage will be UK residents it therefore figures that they are likely to be patriotic and support the British racers, just like coverage in other countries most likely focuses on their home drivers. If you don't like it, go watch the race coverage somewhere else.

By the way, really good coverage this weekend Jake. It was another disappointing race though. If it hadn't been for retirements/pit stops/errors there would have been little good quality racing or on-track overtaking at the front. It was very strange the way the McLarens seemed to almost be going backwards early on, with Hamilton being overtaken by Rosberg and Button simply having an awful race.

Have to agree with an earlier poster on the Mission Control pieces. Didn’t really add anything. We were not allowed to see inside and most of What David said was pretty obvious and didn't tell us anything groundbreaking.

One final point - Red Bull absolutely have to back Webber. If they don't and Alonso finishes well he can take the title. Vettel won't like it, but if it is another Red Bull 1-2 in qualifying, Vettel has to let Webber through. Maybe they will do this and are just not saying this in public? Vettel is as good as out of it now as long as Webber finishes with decent points in Brazil and Abu Dhabi.

I think the fact that Jenson was running a different setup to Hamilton which didn't work says it all. All through the season it has appeared that the "team" is favouring Hamilton. It doesn't really matter whether Jenson qualifies in front or not, during the race he always seems to end up behind. I don't think that Jenson should help Hamilton in the remaining races as I am sure he wouldn't do too much to help Jenson if the boot was on the other foot.

Thanks for the blog Jake! Loved your work on the F1, you're the Lineker of F1. I hope they never let you go!

That said, I'm going to have to echo others who've commented. Some of Legards commentry seems to be a little too erronious during the season. Button passing Alonso in Canada I spotted the moment it was happening, and Alonso already going through on Hamilton in Korea. I don't know if you guys are having to monitor 100 other things, but for a lot of viewers, we've seeing things happen, hearing commentry, and second guessing whats happening.

I'd also like to add Martin Brundle has been fantastic lately. I don't know if I paid less attention to him before the last few races or not, but recently, he's really grabbed my attention. Everything he comments on seems to be informed, tells the viewer what they want to know (ala Rosberg going out from the incident, he called it straight away that Rosberg would've been out of the race too from the crash with Webber). Top marks to him.

Final note. Loving Ted Kravitz involvement. An absolute gem.

Great blog. I thoroughly enjoyed this weekend's coverage and it was a brilliant race result! Ferrari and Fernando! :)) The only criticism was the amount of McLaren coverage there was. It seemed to take over, although I must admit the factory and race control bits where David Coulthard was were quite interesting.

The best bit for me was seeing Fernando on the top step of the podium and Mr Domenicali being interviewed! :))

Sorry Mr Legard, but I agree with all the other criticism on here.

Brundle is incredible - let this criticism of the commentary in no way tarnish him. The guy knows everything about the sport, and is incredibly quick to pick up on what is happening on the track and try to explain it to the viewer. He deserves all the plaudits he gets.

I sometimes consider changing the commentary because Legard is so frustrating - Brundle is perhaps the only reason I don't. Please change it for next year - perhaps just swap Legard with David Croft.

I think the fact that Jenson was running a different setup to Hamilton which didn't work says it all. All through the season it has appeared that the "team" is favouring Hamilton.

=================================

Jenson said after the race that he felt the balance was better with his set up (i.e. he chose to use those different parts). This wasn't the team forcing a different strategy on him, unless I completely misunderstood his comments.

Absolutely great coverage from the BBC again Jake. Coulthard's deadpan delivery was spot on again.

I know he's your friend and all that, but all this is in spite of the awful commentary by Legard. Really bad this time. Talking over Brundle, asking silly questions, describing the mundane as 'extraordinary,' missing key things in the race. It really is poor.

Great blog Jake, thoroughly enjoyed the weekend, looks like an intriguing finish to the season!

Please check out my multi-sports blog at teestacklesandtons.blogspot.com : no F1 blogs yet, but there is in the pipeline! Latest is a piece on the Rooney saga, please go read!

@40 So are you saying that Jenson doesn't have a say in his setup? Very strange reasoning for your bias accusation.

I have to say I was frustrated with the safety car business, as it seems, Martin was too. At one stage I thought we weren't going to get a race at all, and how silly would F1 look then, as they would have given points for a "race" behind the safety car. Surely the FIA need to wake up to this very real possibility.

There seems to be no provision for running the race the next day. At the very least the rule regarding points should be re-written such that you get half-points only if 30% of race laps are under green flag conditions, and full-points for 75% race laps under the green flag. Maybe then the drivers might actually want to race.

I agree with the comments re: Legard. He really is past his sell-by. The guy on the radio with Anthony Davidson is so much better.

#48 terry:
I agree with the comments re: Legard. He really is past his sell-by. The guy on the radio with Anthony Davidson is so much better.

===============================

David Croft - and I completely agree!

Jake. Great wrap-up. Have to agree with Martin, though. The race could have got going again 30 minutes earlier. Did you notice how the track really started to dry only after the safety car went in?

We were getting salty in the stands. My jeans were barely damp yet they had us sit around for 90 minutes. Us fans could barely understand, let alone the locals who came down to check out something they'd been told would be exciting.

I saw them leaving the stands in considerable numbers. And that's a real shame because it actually was a classic GP.

Who was it who said educating the locals about what's what in F1 is paramount? Sheesh, I even had to explain to many there are 19 races this year, in various countries, and last year's F60 was named as such for a reason.

And yes, your "Schumacher" quip is spot on.

As a long-term resident of SK, thanks for your defence of the accommodation. BTW the way, it's "love MOtels", not hotels. Just read the signs printed in Korean above all the buildings, lol!

@40
The reason Hamilton is ahead of Button come the end of most races is cos he's faster!! Simple!

Legards commentating has got poorer as the season has gone on! Getting drivers names wrong is bad enough, but not noticing overtakes for 2 or 3 mins is just embarrassing! Hopefully he will improve or change it next season? Otherwise great coverage this weekend Jake! Hoping for more of the same in Brazil!

@#6

Mokpo has an airport, officially international, but you'd pretty much need a private jet to fly into it.

Is that in the BBC's budget?

That said, next time, Jake, take the KTX.

@#15

The Internet is your friend...

A rant at the FIA and Charlie Whiting...

The over-cautiousness of the FIA is starting to annoy me now... obviously I want to see the sport as safe as possible, and it is testament to the FIA that the sport is so much safer nowadays, but come on, these are the best drivers in the world...let them loose on the track. Think how much action we got when the race finally started properly!

I also think a race should never start under the safety car. There is simply no point. We were robbed of a potentially exhilarating start in Korea.

Forgot to say....LEGARD IS SO POOR. The thing that most annoys me is how he always interrupts Brundle (an utstanding commentator) unecessarily.

Great coverage only one issue! As the European races are over is there any chance of repeating the F1 forum? I normally Sky Plus the races and miss the forum. Shame a catch up cannot be run later in the day? Also no fault of the BBC but why with technology we have today cannot SKY plus realise the program has switched or overrun? Missed 20 laps! Not a happy experiance.

Thoroughly enjoyed the Korean GP coverage and what a race on perhaps the best of the new circuits. As a McLaren enthusiast I did not mind the over exposure of that team, however they are struggling! I've recent read Martin Brundles comment on Lewis missing an opportunity, but what hasn't been widely appreciated is just how poor that McLaren was and I think it is a testament to Lewis's skill just keeping it on the road at that pace. I know Jenson had some different parts on it which made it even worse but it was a clear demonstration that their develoment is floundering. - I hope they can do something for the next race!

@57... Sort of!

Its quite strange that the Mclarens are still in the title race altogether to be honest. As bar a handful of races, the Red Bull has been massively quicker. Really shows how well Hamilton has done over the season, to have been in the second/third fastest car, and even with 4DNFs (I'm including Spain as a DNF), he's still a shot with two races left!

Have Ferrari ever offered to let the BBC do the Forum from their Motor Home (sorry, 'Brand Centre')? Cant remember it ever happening, maybe if it did , Jake, DC and EJ would be more likely to talk about the Scuderia after the race... I mean, they are invited into the McLaren camp, and then people are annoyed that they didnt spend the whole time talking about how wonderful "Im gonna shop you to the FIA" Alonso is? Never gonna happen!

Hi Jake.

That was well and truly an immense and huge weekend of F1. I actually managed to get up and see everything in its entirety and plugged into the forum too. Watched the replay so I could text my little group of people who didn't make it up at the crack of dawn so ended up with HOURS of watching delight. Over 110 texts sent and a very angry phone call at silly oclock to me to moan about the non start... Gosh it was fun!

My only slight reservation is, I'm afraid. Mr Ledgard. My sister sums it up as his style being akin to "THERE'S A PIGEON FLYING NEAR THE TRACK!!!" I'm sure he is a lovely man but his style does not mix with the legend that is Brundle. I could listen to him for a solid 8 hours no problem. He has techy no-whats, huge experience, knows EVERYONE and is relevant to whats going on, even if it just a nugget anecdote from his days driving. I'm also not keen on Mr Ledgards frivolous interruptions, they are not relevant to the action and cuts off something interesting usually.

Anyway, it doesn't stop me watching, I just get to shout more at the telly which is always fun!

On to the track. Well blow me down its gonna kick some serious bottom when its all bedded in. Its a car munching track of destruction! The lap is wicked to watch and very recognisable, I could see what corner they were driving on drivers eye view (when you could actually see past the front wheels!! Well done chaps! when I compare it to somewhere like Dubai, which was dry and antiseptic in the extreme, this track makes me smile all the more.

A good bit of drama that took over my weekend.

To finish with, a little something Brundle said (paraphrased as near as I can) "as I am British, I would love to see a Brit win the championship, but Mark Webber is the peoples champion" I would LOVE to see him lift the trophy - c'mon dude, keep your chin up and drive like the blazes!!


I am sooo excited about the rest of the season, its great to have a tight finish!!

See ya in Brazil!!! wooooooooooooo!

Just to comment on the comments on JL. I totally agree, but not sure David Croft isthe right guy, I mean a lot of his qualities come from the relationship he enjoys with Anthony Davidson I think, and not sure how a Crofty/Brundle commentry team would work if I'm perfectly honest! But please....get someone better than Legard, we beg of you BBC!

PS, also must be said I'd totally agree that the coverage of McLaren was well past saturation levels, I mean as someone who isn't particuarly a fan of JB, LH and McLaren, was slightly off-putting to say the least. However, must be said disagree with some comments that the BBC are anti-Hamilton or Schumacher, when they've deserved praise or criticism they've got it as has been fitting. Coming from a Schumachr fan btw!

Good blog, Jake. I've stayed in lots of love hotels in Korea and they are actually better than many hotels in Europe! I hope you brought home some kimchi for your family ;)

I've got no idea where this idea comes from that Webber is the "people's champion", as was mentioned above paraphrasing Brundle.

Before having the opportunity to drive in a fantastic car like he does now, he spent most of his race weekends making horrendous mistakes, being incredibly dangerous and generally moaning and blaming everyone else for it.

For some reason he is now often referred to as an "Aussie Character" and such like, referring to the Australian stereotype of a guy who is easy going and a good laugh. On the contrary, Webber is actually quite a grumpy guy so I don't know where this idea of him being a "character" comes from.

As for his driving ability, i have a feeling if you put any of the top 10 drivers in the world in that Red Bull they would have stormed the championship by now. Imagine Kubica or Rosberg in that car, let alone Hamilton or Alonso. They would be miles ahead by now.

I will let Vettel off because he is clearly very fast but still young enough to make mistakes. Webber, however, is very lucky to be in that car in my opinion.

To me he not a top driver, and he certainly isn't the "people's champion".

Wow, I am being negative today! I will be more positive next time, I promise.

6. At 00:08am on 26 Oct 2010, Jessica Auckland
Yes, there is an airport in Muan County, which is joined to Mokpo, which resulted in the close of Mokpo Airport in 2007. The existing KTX (high speed train 350kph+) network is currently being extended to join Mokpo to Seoul, but not sure when it will be complete.

Just wanted to echo comments made about the brilliance of Martin Brundle. F1 coverage this year has been phenomenal but I have to say he's the 'stand out' sports commentator of the year for me...hugely knowledgable insight and seems to somehow know what's going to happen before it happens. A big thankyou for 'edutaining' me on the insights behind this magnificent sport.

great coverage again jake, this legard bashings getting a bit tedious, your complaing that legard's missing crucial things in the race, yet bundle dosnt pick up on it either, ive always liked brundle and i liked legard from the start, great coverage, great presenting only thing worht watching on the beeb, heres to interlagos, pity theres only two races.

oh and those complaing aboutt he switch to bbc2, legard told us at least 6 times they were switching, you gonna bash him for that aswell? and not everyone wants to watch f1, people like the politcs stuff so they dont wanna miss it either

Legard's commentary is getting beyond a joke. Was he even watching the race? Was particulary bad when he somehow got the two McLaren's mixed up at the restart. Do the decent thing and replace him BBC.
Brundle is the only reason i haven't switched to 5live commentary, yet.

Otherwise very good coverage!!

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Great coverage as always, but a terrible decision by BBC to switch channels during the show, and that's the second time they have did that this year!

When will they realise that not everyone wants to be up at 6am on a Sunday morning and that some of us prefer to record and watch it later? Nor do we want to sit in front of a PC and watch the rest on iplayer, not everyone has access to that either.

What was wrong with moving Andrew Marr to BBC2 instead of the race? Does it really matter which channel it's on? So annoying!

Great coverage as usual, interesting and informative.
My one request would be if you could you please interview different people in the build up to the race. It seems that because David used to drive for Red Bull that he can get interviews with them whenever. I have yet to see an interview with Vijay Malia. Maybe thats because he won't do an interview, i don't know but it does seem that the main two interviewees are Christian Horner and Martin Whitmarsh.

Still the best coverage of F1 i have seen!!!

The only thing that needs to change for next years coverage is Crofty replacing Legard, I think a Crofty-Brundle commentary team would be almost perfect. Almost.

Agree wholeheartedly with the criticism of Legard (sorry, JL). I thought he was pretty good at the start of last season, but he seems to be getting worse and worse as time goes on.

He's not half as bad as James Allen or Murray Walker were though (surely I'm not the only one who MW drove to distraction?!).

I think the real problem is not those 3 people themselves, but maybe the 'lead commentator' role they have all been asked to perform to Martin Brundles 'expert analysis/opinion' role.

Maybe none of those 3 is the right man for the tough job of partnering the excellent (and evergreen) Brundle? Maybe the lead/support roles need to be reappraised somehow to give Legard less stuff to think about? Maybe 3 rather than 2 is the ideal number of commentators in the box? Maybe Legard just needs to pull his socks up?

I don't know, but something needs to be done.

(in addition to Martin, kudos has to go to yourself, Jake, for the brilliant job you do as anchor and also to Ted Kravitz. The three of you more than make up for having to listen to EJ prattle on about his latest bug bears every fortnight... which is some achievement! Keep up the good work guys!)

Hi Jake,nice to see you back.Enjoyed the blog.Cannot believe the season is almost over.Take care.

I loved the GP this weekend great coverage, I love a good wet race sorts the men from the boys! I do agree with all the comments about jonathan legard though, he really does need to learn who the drivers are.

I also agree with Gwenniejg48, I am also sick of hearing praise Schumacher who has been totally out qualified and out race by Rosberg all season, yet for some reason he's still great? If he had been a rookie he would be out on his ear!
Lets give Nico some more coverage and praise please! He is a fantastic driver definately a world champion in the making.

Lewis for 2010 title!

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Hi Jake,
great race on Sunday. I did notice something when watching the race, as Alonso came out of the pit lane it looks like he crossed the solid white line to get back into the race. I Know that the rules can change from race to race, and Ferrari make bend the rules anyway, but you should take a look.

See you in Massa's back garden
Adrian

I'd like to be added to the (long) list of those who have asked over the season for the replacement of JL as commentator. Much as I love Martin B, I find JL's commentary so irritating that I always select the 5 Live commentary when it is available as a red-button option. When it is not, I mute the TV and listen on a radio while watching the TV. Please replace JL next year! Ideally with David Croft, but almost anyone else who actually understands and knows F1, can see what is happening in front of him, and does not have a pre-prepared list of cliches, would be better.
On the subject of the red-button - why is it not consistent in what it offers race to race? Could alternative comms always be an option? And the driver tracker should be on the website only.

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Hi Jake - I agree very exciting race but appalling marshalling

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Regarding commentary, I highly rate David Croft. Also, as a bit of a fanatic, I find David and Anthony Davidson's (and recently Karun Chandhok) commentary during the free practice sessions to be a fascinating insight into F1.
I do sometimes switch to the 5 Live Radio commentary on freesat during the race (albeit at the loss of Martin Brundle), as I find they provide a much more detailed take on the race on account of them having to "paint a picture" for radio. They always seem to pay more attention to detail, something which in the heat of the moment JL seems to struggle with.
Aside of that, love the whole weekend package from P1 to forum.

#76. At 11:34am on 27 Oct 2010, Adrian Willis wrote:
As Alonso came out of the pit lane it looks like he crossed the solid white line to get back into the race. I Know that the rules can change from race to race, and Ferrari make bend the rules anyway, but you should take a look.

======================================

At the Korean GP the drivers were allowed to cross the white line both when entering and exiting the pit lane. Not quite sure the reasons behind it (I suspected that it had something to do with the comments the drivers were making about the dangerous pit entry being on the racing line - but not really sure how this explained the pit exit bit).

They mentioned it a couple of times - I think it was prior to the race, or perhaps in the gap before the restart - but on this occasion I'm pretty sure it was allowed.

RE: # 76 , Adrian Willis and 78 , Kevin Carter.

You are referring to the rule where drivers should not cross the white line on leaving the pits, however South Korea was an exception on account of the pit exit (in my opinion badly positioned) being so short and feeding directly into the outside of the first corner (incidentally the racing line by the middle of the corner). If you see a shot of the 1st corner, its only a dotted white line after the rumble strips end.

Considering this being a new track after years of design, planning and building, I thought both the pit entry and exit were awful design flaws. I was surprised there was no pit lane related accident (I'm also waiting for someone to crash in the Abu Dhabi pit lane tunnel at some point).

Also the lack of run off area at nearly all corners bar turns 1 and 2 was bizarre for such a new track in my opinion. I know this was a rush job, and they need to get a lot more grafting done ahead of next year, but I really don't understand why that Hermann Tilke bloke is paid so much.

Hi Jake,

What a race!! Wonderful coverage as always from you and all the team. Looking forward to the next 2 races its going to be a close one for the championship. x

@ 75

Well if they put the race show on BBC2 instead of BBC1, it wouldn't have to move at all if there were any delays. As I said, it doesn't matter to me what channel it's on, just as long as it stays on the same channel it starts on. It just seems crazy to switch channels when there is no real need and causing viewers needless hassle.

I have to agree about the forum being replayed as well at some point, that would be nice.

I'm sorry to add to the criticism of Jonathan Legard, but it really is quite woeful.
What I can't understand is that with all this inclusion us F1 fans now have with the BBC coverage (which on the whole is good but plenty room for improvement), why our opinion on such matters as dreadful commentary are largely ignored?

I'm sure there must be loads of people who contribute on here whom have made a valid complaint/criticism of some aspect of the coverage, only to be completely ignored by the BBC- Its as though all these blogs etc are just a facade.

If anyone has yet missed any of the practice sessions (which in my opinion are often better to have playing than the race), i recommend listening to one to see how much better David Croft would be than Legard.

And I should add that it's not the fact Legard misses action on the track which is annoying, I can usually work out whats going on myself, but what is downright unprofessional is his CONSTANT interruption of Brundle to say something pointless.

Surely one of the producers could tell him not to be so rude and interrupt all the time. Brundle usually has something far more interesting to say.

Looks like the Korean marshalls could do with a bit more practice - Vettel got out of his car, ran off (I'm not surprised with the amount of flames coming out of it), got his own fire extinguisher and put it out himself, all before a marshall got anywhere near!

BBC Coverage for the race was rubbish - why switch to BBC2 ? Why not move the politics show ? The coverage was then made even worse with the end of the race shown on BBC2 not being available on iPlayer on Sunday morning!

Agree with comments about JL - he's got to go!

Disappointed with the BBC F1 coverage - come on, sort it out!

hello mate,
nice blog, 1st 1 i've read, got here via twitter. it was great coverage on sunday, especially, as you all had to keep the viewers entertained for so long, i know alot of people had the hump with the delay, but someone could have got seriously hurt out there, so it was right to evaluate the proceedings the way they did. i was happily in bed, getting my only lay in of the week, when my bro in law text me, to see if i was up for the race, i wasn't till he bloody txt. best f1 season for years, all to play for, and nice to see its not a 1 or 2 horse race. lots of tension, reminds me of the good old days, of mansell, senna, prost and co. i like the background on korea to, love hotels eh, seen em on the road in spain, on my travels, not "quite" the same :)
i love all the background of f1, we get these days, good to see the drivers and race, but i love all the backroom stuff, good to see all of what goes on. think i could quite happily drive a truck for an f1 team, and as williams are advertising at the mo, perhaps, i should get a c.v in the post....
anyway, take care, and, what is in that clipboard folder of yours???

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I feel sorry for Legard in all these posts. There appears to be some conspiracy against him almost. It is true that he missed overtakes and important factors and he is not always there. But he is knowledgeable, in Japan I seem to remember him recalling an overtake at Turn 11 in Australia earlier in the year, I mean I cant remember even remember the corner number let alone what happened. Dont get me wrong, he is not brilliant, but then who would replace him?? There aren't two Martin Brundles in this world. Crofy is also a little weak, hes a good laugh but you would all slate him after a year. James Allen was a no no. So just who??
Also about all the comments saying there was too much Mclaren coverage. This is the BBC. I have spent the whole European season in Germany watching it on German RTL, and guess what? They dont speak to anyone other than Michael Schumacher or to Vettel. They have their whole exposure around Red Bull and Mercedes...and thats it! At least the BBC tries its best to get a little of every team.

I have read the BBC T&C's of the Fourm but really would love to know why my comments were removed? Please let me know!

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I agree with Steveb_1990 other countries focus on teams from their own countries and I think it's fine to focus more on McLaren esspically as both drivers are British.

Hi! Why the Ferrari drivers are never on the post race Forum interviews? I think the Forum has never been in Ferrari's motorhome neither. Are they against the BBC or something like that?