F1 Teams to Strike?
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- 2008
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FMoW 2005-07
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LW 2005-07
- 2007
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1. Faster Is Better
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1. Gallardo 5,000th Milestone
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1. Gallardo Spyder: Perfect Dream
2. Lamborghini Production Up - JanuaryVol 3 No 1
1. LP640 Roadster, Still Extreme
2. Gallardo: Italian GT3 Title - 2006
- DecemberVol 2 No 12
1. Gallardo Vs. Porsche
2. Gallardo Dominates and Sets Records - NovemberVol 2 No 11
1. Feeding the Aficionado's Mind
2. LP640 Versace: The Perfect Gift - OctoberVol 2 No 10
1. LP640 Darwinism
2. All-Star Gallardo Nets Big Bucks - SeptemberVol 2 No 9
1. We Drive The LP640
2. Miura Prices On The Rise - AugustVol 2 No 8
1. LP640: Power Generation
2. Keeping an Egear Sharp - JulyVol 2 No 7
1. LP640 In The Navy
2. Gallardo GTR at Nurburgring - JuneVol 2 No 6 ???
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2. - MayVol 2 No 5
1. Murcielago At 2000
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1. A Long Time Coming
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1. LP640, New King of the Hill
2. 2005 Goal Achieved - FebrauryVol 2 No 2
1. Concept M: Revisiting the Miura
2. Spyder Makes DC Debut - JanuaryVol 2 No 1
1. Enbracing The Radical Within
2. Gallardo Starts Victory Hunt - 2005
- DecemberVol 1 No 8
1. Lamborghini Success and Costs
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1. Lamborghini's Under The Hammer
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1. Simply Revolutionary
2. Going Hollywood
Newsletter Awards
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Competition
But that’s only about 1 percent of his salary for the year. That percentage works out roughly the same for midfielders, who earn an average of $8 million a year and of course far fewer points. Not that all drivers agree that the rate is fair. Said Fernando Alonso, who apparently floated the idea of a strike, “It’s a ridiculous amount. We should pay a reasonable price.” But the issue was settled in preseason. So why the drivers’ beef now? For their part, Kimi, Felipe Massa and Lewis Hamilton, who are not Grand Prix Drivers’ Association members but attend meetings, dismissed the possibility of a strike. And GPDA chairman and McLaren test driver Pedro de la Rosa claimed, “[W]e never suggested a strike. We’re just not happy about the way [the rate hike] was implemented. All of this talk of strike has just been rumors.”
Still, the association was intent on taking up the topic with FIA officials. “We’re not happy that the public knows about this. This is a private issue between the drivers and the FIA,” De la Rosa said. “We have asked to meet as soon as possible. This is an issue that needs to be handled quickly.”
There is no report on what transpired between drivers and the FIA after Magny-Cours, but driver discontent seems abated for now. Meantime, Flavio Briatore, perhaps in league with Ecclestone, has suggested a salary cap. This may be subterfuge to distract drivers from their current complaints and to make Bernie and the FIA seem like heroes if they come down publicly against the idea, as expected.
Author: Neil Stylinski
Wednesday August 20 2008
The buzz at Magny-Cours in late June wasn’t about next year but about the next few races and how a possible drivers’ strike might affect them. At issue ostensibly was the superlicense fee structure that went into effect this year. In 2007, a superlicense cost €1,690 plus €477 for each point scored the previous year. This year the cost of the license rose by more than 400 percent overall to €10,000 plus €2,000 per point. So, for instance, Kimi Räikkönen had to plunk down €230,000 (about $368,000) this season.But that’s only about 1 percent of his salary for the year. That percentage works out roughly the same for midfielders, who earn an average of $8 million a year and of course far fewer points. Not that all drivers agree that the rate is fair. Said Fernando Alonso, who apparently floated the idea of a strike, “It’s a ridiculous amount. We should pay a reasonable price.” But the issue was settled in preseason. So why the drivers’ beef now? For their part, Kimi, Felipe Massa and Lewis Hamilton, who are not Grand Prix Drivers’ Association members but attend meetings, dismissed the possibility of a strike. And GPDA chairman and McLaren test driver Pedro de la Rosa claimed, “[W]e never suggested a strike. We’re just not happy about the way [the rate hike] was implemented. All of this talk of strike has just been rumors.”
Still, the association was intent on taking up the topic with FIA officials. “We’re not happy that the public knows about this. This is a private issue between the drivers and the FIA,” De la Rosa said. “We have asked to meet as soon as possible. This is an issue that needs to be handled quickly.”
There is no report on what transpired between drivers and the FIA after Magny-Cours, but driver discontent seems abated for now. Meantime, Flavio Briatore, perhaps in league with Ecclestone, has suggested a salary cap. This may be subterfuge to distract drivers from their current complaints and to make Bernie and the FIA seem like heroes if they come down publicly against the idea, as expected.
