Bernie Ecclestone might want to work on his apologies.
Posted: Fri Jun 24, 2005 5:04 am
I tend to disagree about the negative impact of this U.S. Grand Prix...as the saying goes there is no such thing as bad press. The following is case in point from a guy who realizes that his time is up. Not worried at all about the U.S. market, nor F1 fans globally, this guy instead of making some sort of apology goes on the offensive w/ his statement to Danica Patrick. I love this guy! I've never read so much on F1 in U.S. publications and sports sites since I've been following the sport out here. There is a ton of coverage and this will only increase the interest of the sport from the fringe fan...this is news worthy and people love it out here...many say they will not return to any future U.S. grand prixs...Nonsense, next year the host of the race will have to pay more for the rights to host, not less. If this was Ecclestone's way to sabotage the U.S. market, well, bad strategy...its only a matter of time that the pendulum of U.S race interests swings over to the F1 side follwing the history of first falling in love w/ Indy, then currently being in love w/ Nascar, now following the next logical affair w/ F1...its inevitable and w/ the current demographic of of global minorities increasing to the U.S. the fan base is about to become stronger...factor in a push for an American driver(ie. Scott Speed), BMW's push on the formula BMW circuit out here, (the equivalent of European karting but much more technical), then its a matter of time, and to be completely objective about it, the U.S. will more than likely dominate this sport in the next 10 years...
It will be a real shame when he's ousted for the 2006 season...because its coming...
Bernie Ecclestone might want to work on his apologies.
It seemed the Formula One president and CEO had seen the error of his words about women racing with men when he called Danica Patrick over the weekend, presumably to apologize.
But then he repeated his comments.
Ecclestone made news last week with his comments made in response to Patrick's fourth-place finish at the Indianpolis 500.
Asked about Patrick's success, Ecclestone acknowledged her strong finish, but then made an assessment about women racing with men that caused a stir, saying, "You know I've got one of those wonderful ideas ... women should be dressed in white like all the other domestic appliances."
On Saturday, Patrick received a phone call from Ecclestone, in which he complimented her on her performance at the Indy 500.
But Ecclestone caught Patrick off guard when he repeated to her his statement about women and "domestic appliances."
"I just didn't make sense of it," Patrick said during an IRL teleconference this week. "I was surprised, I guess, somebody would say that to me. And the days after, when it actually came out in the press, people were asking me 'What do you think of that?'
"I was like, 'You know what he told me? He said that on the phone.'"
Patrick said some of Ecclestone's comments were positive and complimentary, which made the exchange more perplexing.
"I can't believe that he would say it to me over the phone, not to my face, but directly to me," she said. "I was a bit confused. ... So I don't really know what to think about it.
"I don't know if he was talking about someone else or the majority or what, I'm not really sure. Or, maybe that's his real feeling.
"If that's the case, then you know, [it] doesn't really matter because I'm racing in the Indy Racing League."
Last month, Patrick became the first woman to lead a lap at the Indianapolis 500. She finished fourth, the best finish by a female in the 89-year history of the race.
Ecclestone has garnered attention before for comments on women in racing.
The 74-year-old told Autosport racing magazine in Feb. 2000 that women would never excel in Forumla One. He added that if a woman did make it, "she would have to be a woman who was blowing away the boys. ... What I would really like to see happen is to find the right girl, perhaps a black girl with super looks, preferably Jewish or Muslim, who speaks Spanish."
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
It will be a real shame when he's ousted for the 2006 season...because its coming...
Bernie Ecclestone might want to work on his apologies.
It seemed the Formula One president and CEO had seen the error of his words about women racing with men when he called Danica Patrick over the weekend, presumably to apologize.
But then he repeated his comments.
Ecclestone made news last week with his comments made in response to Patrick's fourth-place finish at the Indianpolis 500.
Asked about Patrick's success, Ecclestone acknowledged her strong finish, but then made an assessment about women racing with men that caused a stir, saying, "You know I've got one of those wonderful ideas ... women should be dressed in white like all the other domestic appliances."
On Saturday, Patrick received a phone call from Ecclestone, in which he complimented her on her performance at the Indy 500.
But Ecclestone caught Patrick off guard when he repeated to her his statement about women and "domestic appliances."
"I just didn't make sense of it," Patrick said during an IRL teleconference this week. "I was surprised, I guess, somebody would say that to me. And the days after, when it actually came out in the press, people were asking me 'What do you think of that?'
"I was like, 'You know what he told me? He said that on the phone.'"
Patrick said some of Ecclestone's comments were positive and complimentary, which made the exchange more perplexing.
"I can't believe that he would say it to me over the phone, not to my face, but directly to me," she said. "I was a bit confused. ... So I don't really know what to think about it.
"I don't know if he was talking about someone else or the majority or what, I'm not really sure. Or, maybe that's his real feeling.
"If that's the case, then you know, [it] doesn't really matter because I'm racing in the Indy Racing League."
Last month, Patrick became the first woman to lead a lap at the Indianapolis 500. She finished fourth, the best finish by a female in the 89-year history of the race.
Ecclestone has garnered attention before for comments on women in racing.
The 74-year-old told Autosport racing magazine in Feb. 2000 that women would never excel in Forumla One. He added that if a woman did make it, "she would have to be a woman who was blowing away the boys. ... What I would really like to see happen is to find the right girl, perhaps a black girl with super looks, preferably Jewish or Muslim, who speaks Spanish."
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
