The Woking-based outfit has long been concerned about the growth of partnerships between outfits. It felt that the F1 would be much better off with 10 completely independent competitors.
In a long column he wrote on his team’s website Thursday, McLaren CEO Zak Brown believes it is time for the FIA to enter and end alliances.
He believes that not only does this harm competition on the track, but that such connections result in some outfits being forced to vote for rule changes that are not in their ultimate interest because they need to support their partners.
“At present, decisions about the future of the sport can be stopped by a minority rather than a majority, and they are further distorted by the voting rights of some teams in favor of their associated teammate,” Brown wrote.
“There have even been cases where an affiliated team, in order to please its larger partner, voted for a clear disadvantage for itself. This is not a sport. This doesn’t put fans first.
“It is a situation that needs to be addressed and that is why we are calling for secret ballots to be held at all meetings of the F1 Commission with immediate effect.
“In other sports, the regulator has the power of governance because it always focuses on what is in the best interests of the sport as a whole, which should be the central consideration in Formula One.
“A change in the voting process could lead to more agile decision-making, which ultimately benefits the interests of the fans and thus of the entire sport, including the participants.”
Zak Brown, McLaren Racing CEO
Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images
Due to the current regulatory structures of F1, changes to the regulations must be made by the F1 Commission. The panel consists of 30 votes – one for each of the 10 teams, plus 10 for the FIA and 10 for the F1.
A rule change for the current season requires a “super majority”, which corresponds to 28 of the total of 30 votes.
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When Brown thought about the broader partnerships between the teams, he realized that he didn’t think this was the right direction for Formula One.
“The rise of team membership has become unhealthy for our sport,” he added. “It is not in the best interests of competition for two or even three rivals to share assets and align strategically. One of the basic principles of Formula 1 in contrast to other branded racing series is open competition between the designers.
“I don’t want the number of teams in F1 to decrease, but team membership remains a problem as it doesn’t promote a level playing field. Here further changes have to be made to the Formula 1 controls.
“There have always been conflicts of interest in Formula One and it is unlikely that these will change anytime soon. It is all the more important that F1 and the FIA, which have no other agenda than the success of the entire sport, are in charge in the best interests of F1 and are not blocked and slowed down at every turn. “
In the column, Brown also spoke of his belief that Formula 1 was in robust shape, but still saw great opportunities for growth over the next few years.
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