Fan launches petition to free up Formula 1 livery restrictions

We received a request from Formula 1 fan Ravi Bajpai with regards to exposing his idea of freeing up livery restrictions that prevail in Formula 1. This was initial request:

Dear Grand Prix 247 writers,

Firstly, I am a huge fan of the website. I have just started a petition to allow F1 teams to run one-off liveries. You can read all about my plan on the petition page linked below.

I really feel passionately that F1 teams should be able to run easily recognizable yet still eye-catching liveries. It would benefit everyone involved from fans, to teams, to sponsors, to race organizers, etc.

This amendment is actually feasible for the FIA to agree on. A couple races from now we could really have something going.

I really believe that we could do something with this to change formula one racing for the better and hope that you will help me out on this.

The thing about starting these petitions is that it can be very hard to get signatures when you just start out. Most of these petition die because of this. Maybe you can help…

Thank you for your time.

Ravi Bajpai

The cause which Ravi is obviously passionate about deserves to be presented to our readers for feedback and support should they find his arguments worthy of their vote.

He is a relatively new fan of the sport and his mindset offers insight into the new generation of Formula 1 fans which the sport needs, not only to attract, but also nurture and develop into long term supporters. His voice is important.

Amid stern rules such as no helmet design change during a season (now why would they do that?), the way this concept is received by the authorities will be interesting.

Intrigued we posed some questions to Ravi about his petition and the issue of a more flexible livery policy in F1.

How long have you been an F1 fan?

Ravi Bajpai: I have been an F1 fan for around three years starting when Vettel began his domination of the sport in 2013. I also live in a part of the United States with little to no racing. Not even NASCAR! The closest I have come to an interaction with an F1 fan is seeing one guy in Boston with a Martini Williams shirt.

Why do you feel one-off liveries would be good for F1 teams and the sport in general?

RB: One-off liveries are just an, admittedly small, but still entertaining addition to the circus that is a grand prix weekend. In this era of F1 when many races look almost the same, last year 11 out of the 19 races could have been described as a Mercedes pole position then double podium on Sunday with a Ferrari tagging along, it is nice to spice things up with a dazzle-camouflage Red Bull or an white and red McLaren-Honda. In terms of the sport in general, almost every party benefits from this amendment because one-off liveries tend to generate a crazy amount of press, if done properly. For an example take the dazzle-camo Red Bull in testing last year. This one small change generated a huge amount of press for Red Bull, all major F1 news websites and more importantly many unaffiliated websites covered it. That benefited Red Bull’s sponsors, Red Bull and their finances, the sport which got lots of coverage, the Jerez circuit which ran the tests and many others. I want to make that possible for teams during the actual F1 season where the media is in full swing and the viewership is exponentially higher!

In your opinion what are the Pros of this?

RB: The pros are, as I list in my video here>>>, eye-popping car liveries for fans, more press every grand prix weekend, more fans as a result of the increased press, more fans to tune into the race, more sponsors since fans will actually look at their logos and more revenue for F1 teams from increased sponsorship. There might be more, but these are the main points.

In your opinion what are the Cons of this?

RB: The downside is that it is possible that new liveries could confuse new fans. This is why the FIA and Strategy Group does not currently allow this. However, it is possible to make easily recognizable stunning liveries. Just look at F1 YouTuber aarava’s Red Bull liveries he made himself in his “ultra-mod” career mode.

In addition to that, as revealed in the 2015 fan survey, 95.1% of fans follow F1 on T.V and it that case the commentators can easily clear up any small amount of confusion with their “If you are just tuning in now” spiel.

RB: Finally, as part of the rules, race organizers must approve the one-off liveries to ensure they are “easily recognizable”. After all teams have to have a limit on what liveries they can run. I also wanted to make it the race organizers since they are the people it will affect the most as spotting cars can be tough. This caveat should make sure they are kept happy.

Looking back on the history of F1: where/when would one-off schemes have been good for F1 teams?

RB: There are a couple one-off liveries that really stand-out to me. The first is the yellow Marlboro Mclaren Light MP4/2C at the 1986 Portuguese GP. This car is easily recognized as a Mclaren but does a great job at marketing the Marlboro Light cigarettes. It also just looked fantastic to me. Another is the Star Wars Red Bull of the 2005 Monaco GP. This was just a very eye-catching silly-in-a-good-way press stunt that was very fun to watch, especially since the pit crew dressed up like Storm Troopers! Finally, there was the sponsors-less Ferrari F2001 at Monza, which was completely blank except for a black nosecone in memoriam of the September 11th attacks. That was just an incredible act of unity in a very tough time.

Why the petition to have this implemented?

RB: This petition will not reshape the regulations of Formula 1, but if we are successful it will show the sport’s governors that the fans have a say. Many of the new laws in Formula one have been against the fans wishes, new qualifying formats, limited driver’s helmets, etc. and attempts to listen to us like the Autosport fan survey have not resulted in any change. This petition should show that the fans can change Formula 1. It will also set a precedent for other F1 fans that movements like this are possible. Lastly, because this amendment would benefit many powerful parties like sponsors and strategy group F1 teams, it should be far easier to pass then a change in engine formula back to V8 or V10s.

In conclusion…

RB: I believe my examples, especially the “Camo-Bull”, really make my case. The important thing to note is that new well-designed liveries generate lots of press and even when the amendment is in place they should still be able to make a large amount of press given the limitless opportunities of livery designs. Also remember the race organizers will be judging a livery based on its recognizably to ensure that the FIA’s confusion worries are put too bed. Even though this is a small petition vying for a small change I hope F1 fans will sign to prove that they have a say in the regulations and matter too.

To support the cause go vote here>>>