IT WAS BETTER IN MY DAY! (OR WAS IT?)- Opinions on how F1 WASN'T as Good in the Old Days

[@AidanMillward]

It must be said, I'm not saying here it was crap then and better now or vice versa, I'm only saying it might not have been as different at least at an on track level as we lead ourselves to believe.

[@WromWrom]

Happy New Year! Talking about the "good old days"... I was going through the background information of some Automobilista mods and noticed (and was reminded) how many F1s had a Ford Cosworth Motor. Is there a story in there about how that motor is not used anymore in F1?

[@AidanMillward]

@@WromWrom Story of the Cozzy DFV? It is the most successful engine ever.

[@WromWrom]

Sure - and how did it come that it's not being used in F1 anymore? Enquiring minds would like to know...

[@AidanMillward]

WromWrom turbos. That’s essentially it. The turbos of the 80s killed it and before it can come back everyone was using ten cylinders.

[@cbr3220]

at least the engines sounded good

[@footynutguy]

The best era was when you got into f1 enough to understand what was going on.

[@hugolouessard3914]

Not really. I grew up with Scumacher domination but my favorite time is 2005-2012. I prefer the sound of V10s but V8s are more than ok to me. 2003, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2012 were way better than most 92-02 years.

[@davonmulder5272]

@@hugolouessard3914 same here but i still did not understand much back then just knew the red car in front was a Ferrari/Schumacher

[@yeetabix2752]

I sadly started with 2020. Favourite era is mid-90s

[@duster0066]

Yup. I'm yank and older. Mario Andretti got my attention in 1978. I was 18 and headed for drag racing. I was doing it illegally on the streets. F1 and Sprint Cars (two types of cars Andretti drove) changed my mind.

[@Scorpio19110]

While I started watching F1 around 2009, I began to understand F1 starting in 2014, not a great period to grasp what is going on in the world of F1. Unfortunately I don’t remember much from races prior 2014, but the same thing could be said for quite a lot of races from 2009 onwards

[@I-am-Josh]

But Aidan can’t you hear me? THE ENGINES SOUNDED GOOD

[@fourutubez7294]

Until the mandatory V10 ruined it all by making them all sound like wasps on phet . NB I despise the mandatory V10 thing because it symbolised F1 stopping being a sport and became an entertainment.

[@sulphurous2656]

Yes.

[@AidanMillward]

“Those score lines don’t happen all the time” Manchester City 9-0 Burton Albion. 😩

[@markkingsbridge1415]

It's refuelling that gets me. People keep demanding it back but it was bloody awful. Cars on different loads so mismatched they couldn't race. Decided in the pits more often than not.

[@DjDolHaus86]

We're of similar age (I'm a little older) and I completely agree that the late 90's/early 2000's weren't really any better or worse than modern day. It was almost exactly the same if not worse, everybody just forgets the boring races

[@alvmusic4402]

Nostalgia is a bitch of a drug.

[@default123default2]

CART races and seasons were more eventful

[@TotoDG]

“We need to return to the circuits of the old days!” Okay, I’ll bite. How about Caesar’s Palace? See how stupid that is? These “classic fanatics” say a lot of things about the past without elaborating on what they mean.

[@AidanMillward]

Pretty much. The fans don't know what they want

[@therrydicule]

I wouldn't say no to the 1983 & 1984 cart distorted oval in urban setting track to be in f1. But, only because it would be radically different than the f1 standard track. And sometimes, something radically different bring a good show. Albeit, it would piss of a lot of people. kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y3aUgaKIas-bfNU

[@carlosbarton763]

And to prove Aidan's point, Zandvoort's return has been announced and everyone is going on about how boring the races will be...

[@fulldump9834]

SovietOnion That’s 1 track. I’m not saying the past was better or worse but that’s a weak argument.

[@keyboardwarrior327]

That's a hell of a strawman you've created there. No reasonable person would assume that when someone says that they're referring to a circuit that held 2 races.

[@CobraAce04]

I think the last thing F1 needs to break up the so called top 3 dominance is more money in the lower ranks. I honestly think Renault will join them eventually but there's still no getting around the fact that when Tobacco left, nothing came in to replace it. I thought energy drinks would but only Red Bull seems to be flexing any real financial muscle

[@postmortemspasm]

Tobacco never left, ding dong. Google 'mission winnow'

[@chsims7032]

After Marlboro "disappeared", Phillip Morris didn't. They've been pouring money into Ferrari the whole time even without the visual sponsorship. only recently have you seen it come back with "Mission Winnow" or even the "A Better Tomorrow" on the McLaren

[@julioacceus253]

TROJAN Condom Livery would look cool on an F1 car.

[@kmcarchive8288]

@@julioacceus253 I think Durex used to be a sponsor in the 70's!

[@VGOM2000]

@@kmcarchive8288 Yep, Surtees. Not that it helped though, that was a hard season for them 😉

[@jimbass1664]

What Aidan said. I've been watching since mid 80's. You know what? Some of the Senna/Prost/Mansell races were boring. The only thing we had then that we don't have now is Murray Walker, which I think is the thing most people miss. :-)

[@Anon24052]

Hamza Esat Everything you’ve just said is complete BS

[@Anon24052]

Hamza Esat Are you talking about the 80s or 90s? What about the crowds make the 80s better? Why can’t you make a point that isn’t stupif?

[@Anon24052]

Hamza Esat So it’s better because it isn’t today and you liked the engines? Ok then

[@Secret72062]

That is really true, I started watching the '78 season. Almost every race other than Monaco and Sweden, the Lotus of Andretti or Peterson just pulls away, and stays like that until the checkered flag. Also now everything just feels sticky with the sap of politics and thats the most unfortunate part.

[@toomanyuserids]

Mario wanted his title and worked like hell with Chapman to make the car work. This could be a movie

[@rodrigodepierola]

I loved the 79-84 years where there were a lot of different winners every season.

[@crystalracing4794]

Ultimately, we want F1 to have everything at once and it's not realistic whatsoever. We need to accept that F1 is limited in its ability to produce non-stop entertainment and we have to accept it can be dull & processional (as dreadful as it sounds). Look at other sport series like the Premier League, where the top six are the only real contenders for the title race and the fans still turn up. The truth is the entertainment in F1 ebbs and flows. Nostalgia will always be a thing despite only 3 drivers being able to win regularly having always been a thing. Great seasons only happen sporadically (1997, 2003, 2008, 2010 & 2012) and they get hyped up to death, plus memories of seeing your favourite drivers win (*coughs Kimi*) worsens that lust for the past. But I'll throw this stick to you: the only thing the hybrid has done well is produce plenty of DRS overtakes and Pirelli-controlled spectacles. Only 11 drivers have won a race since 2010 and if Leclerc/Gasly/any young driver fail to get their maiden wins this coming season, that's six fewer winners than any decade of F1 gone past. Plus the lack of a driver's champ fight lasting the full distance (thanks to increased number of races and Vettel bottling) is really bad (although I certainly do not want dropped scores from 1988 or NASCAR's chase system to be a thing). You are correct about the fans don't know what they want, but it is the governing body's fault for kowtowing. To paraphrase a cliche "You only miss something when it's gone"- in this case, fans only appreciate the joy and spectacle of their favourite era when it's finished. In a sense, F1's strive for perfection never ends as we now have bullet-proof power units that can last 7 race weekends, extreme aero to reduce drag and increase downforce and vanilla race tracks with huge asphalt run-off. I would love old stuff like gravel traps, tyre wars and qualifying engines to return, but of course that does not fit any eco-friendly/pro-safety agenda nor guarantee entertainment and close racing. In addition, we live in the age of social media, where everyone wants a new story or fad every two minutes. But if there's an era that would kill F1 if it came back (ignoring the tragic blood shed), it's 1950s/60s/early 70s. Apart the slipstream thrillers at Monza & Spa, the likes of Fangio, Ascari, Clark & Stewart would typically win by half a minute and the backmarkers lapped seven times. At least those races are consigned to the history books.

[@Bahamuttiamat]

Well said. Couldn't agree more. Question; why do f1 fans expect mercedes to apologizes for being exceptional? Or blame them for winning? Very strange outlook.

[@heliumtrophy]

Explains why I'm looking at old videos of Mika Hakkinen. As a kid, I wanted him to lose (yeah Schumacher blah blah) but if he won I would try to imitate him complaining endlessly about the car. So yeah, there's always nostalgia.

[@timford3599]

To quote "The Man", Joe Jackson, circa 1981; "You can't get what you want, til you know what you want."

[@filmandfirearms]

True, only 12 drivers have won a race since 2010, but after Leclerc, there were still only 108 race winning drivers since 1950. This is par for the course

[@therealjuralumin3416]

I grew up watching the Schumacher domination, and while I love the V10 engine and the regulations they had, I much prefer the early V8 era, and firmly believe that it’s a thousand times more exciting and dramatic than what we’ve seen in the hybrid era. In the first 5 seasons of the V8 era we had 5 different world champions from 5 different teams, in the first 5 years of the hybrid era we’ve had 2 champions from 1 team... I agree that the whole “it was better in my day” argument is mostly wrong, but you can't for a second believe that what we have now is better than what we saw between 2006 and 2010!

[@Bahamuttiamat]

Yes it is better. The cars are more reliable and the driving talent higher.

[@AidanMillward]

The regulations stayed stable, allowing for more diminishing returns from the top teams. Now the fia is trying to stop the Mercs with constant new rule changes but the big three are spending their way around the problem while the others slip back.

[@fulldump9834]

Brawn GP was a weird one off with the diffuser loophole and then 2010 began Red Bull dominance until 2014. Only really 3 years of different teams winning over that span and Ferrari came soo close to winning another title Brazil 2008. I don’t think those years were the magic sweet spot of F1 you think they were.

[@julemandenudengaver4580]

@@Bahamuttiamat that's make it's boring

[@GaryWagers]

I was shocked that five drivers managed to win races in 2004. Even discounting Monaco and Trulli being handed a win because of whatever happened to Schumacher and Montoya (I think it was Montoya?) behind the safety car, that's still one more driver than I thought possible in a season that causes me, to this day, to treat the German and Italian national anthems as a single song.

[@cbr3220]

imagine if fans were stupid enough to demand reinstating team orders, grooved tires, michelin coming back, etc.

[@AidanMillward]

Cbr 3 essentially- make it like it was when Ferrari was winning 😂

[@cbr3220]

hehehe that is kinda funny since people are hoping for ferrari to do that for the season

[@fulldump9834]

Cbr 3 Team orders never left. Look at Bottas.

[@HeavyMetalGamingHD]

@@fulldump9834 they left for like one season in the early 2010s. remember "Fernando is faster than you" and the outcry, because it was actually forbidden back then. But it was stupid, because f1 is a team sport. Equally stupid were the team radio rules in 2016.

[@souldry]

Team orders rule

[@GreatCdn59]

As much as I get all nostalgic about F1 of 20 years ago, remember this stat : Want to know how many overtakes there were at the 1999 Spanish Grand Prix?? Answer : 1 ......... for 8th place!

[@Blueflag04]

Say that to every Monaco races

[@carlosbarton763]

Once again Aidan, you make some really good points with your video, I find myself completely in agreement. If you want to look at it psychologically, the further back an event is in the past, the less you'll remember of it, and you'll isolate the most memorable/emotionally powerful parts and start to represent that as the whole in your head, when that was never the case. The more time passes, the more you're able to build a view and opinion, it's much easier to do that with past events than present ones. I guess it can't be helped, but man, can some people take it to extremes sometimes. In the case of the rose-tinted F1 fans, that could well be the engine sounds amongst other things. I do agree that a lot of people have become so nostalgic and emotionally attached to past eras of the sport that their memories and perspective of it have become warped, unhealthily so in a lot of cases. They sometimes become excessively romantic and shortsighted to the point where some get toxic and unpleasant when other people disagree with them. Suppose the internet and social media, YT, Reddit existed in a big way back in 2002, 2004 etc Would you see posts/comments, in the aftermath of the tedious San Marino, Hungarian GPs saying 'at least the engines sound great', or 'at least the cars are breaking lap records' and taking that as a big positive from a dull race? I doubt it. People would focus on more integral stuff than that. I've seen articles from 2002 talking about F1 being 'a sport in crisis', guess why. Austria 2002 and Indy 2005 demonstrated the political scene was just as ugly and unproductive as it is now. And if money, or lack of, is a huge problem for teams in F1 today, look how many cars were there on the grid between late 2002 and the end of 2005. Oh yes, 20, same as now. There's talk of how up to 2009 or 2014 (take your pick), the drivers could push flat out every lap, it's not like tyres would wear down, fuel would run low, engines and other car parts would fail and a third/half of the field could drop out as a result of unreliability... Valencia was hated as a track for producing virtually no racing or overtakes (IIRC there were none in 2009?), but I see people commenting on the 2012 race (the only one that had any truly positive reception) and talking about how the racetrack was a good one and that it should be brought back! I'm even seeing people making positive comments on videos of onboard feeds from 2014 and saying nice things about that season for the first time! Many miss the Red Bull Ring having a deadly gravel trap at the penultimate corner, and talk about how drivers aren't punished for making mistakes there anymore, forgetting that are now massive kerbs at that corner that would rip your suspension up and put you out on the spot if you drove over them. On a personal note, I started watching F1 in 2010, plus I've watched a fair number of races from the 1990s and 2000s since then, plus I've read a ton of articles from past decades. 2012 was probably the best season overall for me, and Baku 2017 my favourite race that I've seen live, perhaps suggesting I'm into F1 more for entertainment, although I've learnt to enjoy the finer details in the races, I really dig the statistics too. I agree that it's not much different to a few years ago in terms of overall quality, and I still love it. I don't feel too differently about 10-20 years ago either, you point out that similar numbers of drivers won a race in any given season. While Williams were 2-3 seconds off the pace in 2018, that sort of speed would put you firmly mid-grid, if not on the 3rd/4th row in some seasons up to the mid-2000s. The field spread was often worse then, even if it's a shame we don't see teams like Minardi on the track anymore. Shoutout to @Ciaron Smith, @porksniffer, this is something they ought to check out

[@crystalracing4794]

"I'm even seeing people making positive comments on videos of onboard feeds from 2014" good grief that's an absurd level of fickleness! At least 2017 & 2018 have produced proper beefy overtakes with the bigger cars that need to be hustled like the late 1990s machines.

[@azynkron]

86-90.. At no other point in F1's history have we had so many great drivers more or less at their peak at the same time. Sure, Mclaren dominated it, but the races were great. Senna, Prost, Berger, Mansell, Piquet.. Yeah..

[@VOLHans]

IMHO the McLaren cars of that era are some of the best looking F1 cars we've had.

[@adampetten5349]

Watching Ferrari vs Benetton in 1988 was fun but so is Ferrari vs Red Bull these days. At least Mercedes isn't quite as invincible as McLaren was.

[@AidanMillward]

How many actual battles were there though? Yeah, they all won a race or two, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they had to work for it.

[@scribecopywriting2124]

In 1984 and 1988 McLaren dominated (12 from 16 races in '84 and 15 from 16 in '88) however during this period, we have a diverse range of winners: 1985: Prost, Lauda, De Angelis, Senna, Mansell, Rosberg, Alboreto, Piquet= 8 winners 1986: Prost, Senna, Mansell, Piquet, Berger= 5 winners 1987: Piquet, Mansell, Senna, Prost, Berger= 5 winners 1989: Mansell, Berger, Prost, Senna, Boutsen, Nannini= 6 winners 1990: Senna, Prost, Mansell, Boutsen, Patrese, Piquet= 6 winners. Could well have been 7 different winners if Capelli's March held on for just another 3 laps in France. What made this period great as well is that there was a decent mix of good and great drivers, but also new teams entering the sport, and while you had DNPQ kings like Coloni, EuroBrun and life in the mix, it also gave us solid midfield teams who could challenge for the top 6 like Minardi, Dallara and March. Between Senna's death and the 1998 season, F1 lacked notable "star power". Schumacher was the best, but it was a position he inherited rather than earned outright through beating Senna. His biggest challenger was Hill (a good but not great driver) and then Villeneuve (a natural talent with speed, but lacked Schumacher's work ethic). It wasn't until Hakkinen took full advantage of the great McLaren/ Mercedes combo in 1998 that Schumi really had to fight, and it's no coincidence that F1 became boring for a few years when Hakkinen retired at the end of '01 and yet again Schumi lacked a real challenger for a couple of seasons.

[@Moribax85]

really? in 1986 the average gap between the 1st and 2nd was in the 25 second range, extremes were the 2nd round in Spain where Senna won by 0.014s on Mansell, and the 12th, where Prost won by over a lap on Alboreto in 2nd place, Johansson in 3rd was 2 laps down. on average only the first 2 were on the lead lap. in 1987 the average 1st-2nd place gap was again 30 seconds, and again on average only the first 2 were on the lead lap. in 1988 the gap reduced to around 10 seconds, and this time 3 drivers on average were on the lead lap. in 1989 we got back to the conforting 30 seconds gap, but we still have the average 3 drivers on the lead lap. in 1990 the gap was around 10 seconds, and still 3 drivers on the lead lap. adding to that, in 1986 5 drivers won races: Prost won 4, Mansell 5, Piquet 4, Senna 2 and Berger 1. in 1987 Piquet won 3, Mansell 6, Senna 2, Prost 3, Berger 2... still 5 drivers, the same as the year before 1988: Senna 8, Senna 7, Berger 1. 3 drivers, the same as the 2 years before 1989: Prost 4, Senna 6, Mansell 2, Boutsen 2, Nannini 1, Berger 1. 6 drivers, 2 new entries, wow 1990: Senna 6, Prost 5, Piquet 2, Mansell 1, Boutsen 1, Patrese 1. 6 again, 1 new entry and btw, the order is the final championship points. last consideration: on all those races, on average less than half the cars that started finished the race... in a sense the 1996 Monaco GP was a return to origins.

[@chrish931]

I agree with most of your points, and about the V10 nostalgia im sick of it too, speed and engineering is what F1 is about, not engine sound and these power units are impressive even if they don't sound as aggressive. I started watching in the late 80's as a kid and there are things I liked about that era over the current one, many of which shouldn't or can't come back. I miss pre qualifying but the grid is too small now so everyone is in. I miss grass and dirt on the side of the track that made drivers have to respect track limits but safety is important and as much as I miss it, I'm fine with no deaths or horrible incidents like Connelly being thrown out of his car onto the track. What I miss most though is the difference in the cars, the new cars are so similar, that's one reason they are so close in performance (same problem in IndyCar but worse, at least F1 has more than one chassis and two engines). I miss seeing cars with V8, V10, and V12 with wildly different handling characteristics where especially in the mid field you would see much different results from track to track depending in which track favored which engine and chassis design. The thing is though I've been around long enough to watch three decades of racing and many of the problems of this era or the same as the past and you hit on that point perfectly in this video. Things change, in the time I've watched they have allowed every kind of assist to none and back again and it all stays the same, the best teams win and get the best drivers so the best drivers end up in the best equipment, the cost is always too high to sustain smaller teams for long, and passing in open wheel cars on a road course is hard and doesn't happen often. If you want passing watch touring cars or NASCAR, even in IndyCar they need push to pass on road courses which is the equivalent to DRS, you really only see a lot of passing on the ovals. I loved F1 and Cart in the 80's and 90's but F1 and IndyCar today while different are still entertaining and enjoyable to watch, it's a different era and different rules, it's all part of racing and ever changing development and engineering. Plus safety in racing is at level like never before in all major series and that is never a bad thing.

[@RosGamesBG]

And not only this! Also everything was hardly accessible in those times. Now... we're having this media oversaturation. In the past - the drivers were praised as legends, monsters, dragons... but now because of the media exposure - they see that the drivers are actually humans just like everyone else. It's like our childhoods - "mine was the best! the new generation has an awful childhood". Nostalgia is the key factor. The facts don't show something extraordinary in the past that has worsen. In 20 years... people will be like "woah.. do you remember Gasly winning with Toro Rosso on Monza?" and so on and so on :D

[@AndresDCK]

No one will remember gasly win

[@RosGamesBG]

@@AndresDCK Yeah! Or Ocon's. Everyone can recall Panis' victory in Monaco ofc.

[@AndresDCK]

@@RosGamesBG exactly, panis was an amazing condition, gasly or ocon it wasn't

[@glynnsmith4560]

It was better in 'my day' ... 'my day' began in 1958 when I first took interest and continues into the future. Everything was better during that time. Certain aspects have been 'crap' at certain times. I suspect nothing will compare to seeing Niki Lauda squeezing a helmet over his bandages just 6 weeks after being rushed to hospital in Germany.

[@marguskiis7711]

1970s races were actually quite boring.

[@heliumtrophy]

There is something to be said about the courage of the drivers in that time. Courage and madness rolled into one. So that would be an extra element of attraction for anyone to watch F1 whereas while I wouldn't want to denigrate the life of Jules Bianchi, we are seeing an ever more sanitised product and that's what people rail against. And the engines.

[@blueguy12345]

Yeah and all those pilots dying or getting seriously injured all the time. We miss those good old days

[@marcossonicracer]

"In my day the tires were skinnier and Rudolf Carraciolla was the Man" XD

[@Jacf352]

Glynn Smith but did the engine sound good?

[@MrScootmcg]

Correction: The V10s sounded incredible on TV, in the flesh even more so. Your points are generally valid though, during the 90s/00s F1 was largely a technology demonstration/procession with some racing and the occasional drama thrown in. If you wanted to see close unpredictable races during that era then touring cars or Cart/IRL was a much better bet. F1 is generally in a better place these days with the only concern being the lack of title sponsors and the financial stability this gave teams. This has been negated somewhat by a noticeable increase in paid seats and (imo) a subsequent reduction in overall driver quality (usual suspects aside). Back in previous eras cracking F1 for a young driver was incredibly difficult. To get there never mind hang around took real talent, not just a well connected, smooth talking manager or a wealthy benefactor.

[@Scranman247]

I was watching in the late 90s and early 00s. Those who talk about that era like it was endless summers, passionate lovemaking to a V10 soundtrack and constant wheel to wheel gladatorial tussles are talking out of their backsides. The 2018 Spanish Grand Prix was slated as a seriously boring race. And it was. But the 1999 Spanish Grand prix was about the most boring race I have ever seen. Excluding the start and pitstop position changes there was only one on track overtake in the race. It was Damon Hill on Rubens Barrichello for a non points yielding 7th place. It was then rendered irrelevant as Barrichello was disqualified after the race for an illegal undertray.

[@AidanMillward]

Danny All Valencia had one like that and everyone said it was a shit track and has to go. 2012 had a great race there and now we’re hearing about how it was a great place and needs to come back. Only place that “needs” to come back is turkey.

[@dukelive]

@@AidanMillward They need to build that bugger in another country where people will attend - by a country mile the best of the newer tracks!

[@AidanMillward]

dukelive yeah, they built it the wrong side of town. There’s only one road leading there.

[@Garvm]

Aidan Millward Valencia circuit will never come back. It costed us too much and was a cover for political corruption.

[@StanceSantos]

You want the cars to sound good, hey try actually going to a race they sound a LOT better in person

[@Jacf352]

The sound of modern F1s is fucking exaggerated by those who have never been to a race. They don’t sound like V10s but they do sound pretty cool, almost like jet planes even

[@viandramonisyaf8623]

@@Jacf352 Ikr. Like I've only been to one race in person and only watched the race from the grandstand but even with only that it actually sounds great

[@leechristopher3870]

@@Jacf352 I've been to races when they were V10s as well as more recent races, and whilst the modern hybrids don't sound terrible or anything they aren't a patch on the V10s. The scream of a V10 at full chat makes the hairs on the back of your neck stand on end, there's a reason why fans miss them and it's not rose tinted specs for once.

[@ronmastrio2798]

Yeah just go to a race in whatever oil rich country in the middle of bum-fuck nowhere can afford to build a new terrible track and pay the series to host a race. F1 has always been a playground for rich playboys but now they don't even host races in countries with an ounce of Motorsport history just whoever pays the most. The only time I've ever had the privilege of seeing an F1 car in person was the last of the V10's Fernando Alonso's championship winning Renault in a demonstration at Donington. Most fans don't get the opportunity to experience live races and the current direction of Formula 1 will only alienate them further.

[@herberthans7015]

seriously if the cars sound bad on TV and sound bad in video games then they just sound bad, period. a damn 3 cylinder citroen doesn't sound bad in person, that doesn't mean it deserves any attention or a place in motorsports though. hearing ANY V10, similar sounding 5cylinders, V12, V8, it always puts a smile on my face. turbo 4cylinders? annoying. we used to have (F1) motorsport engines being put into roadcars, now we put garbage into F1 cars and garbage in road cars. at least in motorsports the fun factor should not be put aside. how the hell are you going to talk about efficiency while the construction of your racetracks, the production of your tires, the planes transporting your fans to your racetracks are a clusterf**k of pollution? you can start with any of these things instead of the engines and it would make sense, but the entire efficiency/EV movement was never about making sense at all. bentley using biofuels in their GT3 racecars, now THAT'S making sense.

[@rideroundandstuff]

Oh my god, thank you so much! This really needed to be said! I'm so tired of all the comments about how the late 90s and early 2000s were supposedly better than today.

[@DoctorHver]

They are.

[@rideroundandstuff]

DoctorHver Not when you actually saw it live.

[@DoctorHver]

@@rideroundandstuff on TV or on the track?

[@rideroundandstuff]

DoctorHver both (I only saw two races live on track in 97 and 98 though)

[@soldieroffortune308]

I grew up with Formula 1 from 91 to 99, watched religiously and at the time would have said that there is no better period. If anything the early 2k Ferrari-Schumacher trouncing kinda put me off Formula 1 and I could never recover. Yesterday I watched the Dutch qualifying over lunch with my folks as we used to do in the good old days and it left me completely uninterested. While you might be tempted to think nostalgia would make me say 91-99 was the best era for F1, I have since, courtesy of KZbin and other places discovered the 1980s seasons as well as the late 70s and I will say the best period of F1 was likely from 1976 up to and including 1995. With probably the best season IMO being 1984. Bloody, dangerous for the first part, yes, but entertaining and fascinating. I think there are two types of people who follow F1, those who follow teams and those who follow drivers. The first will keep on watching almost no matter what. The second will stop watching once their heroes age and retire. And sadly, F1 is not a great place for heroes to come up through the ranks anymore. Lafitte, Senna, Schumacher, Piquet, Alesi they were all sensations the minute they appeared on the grid. Ok, Lafitte and Alesi never won a championship or that many races in the case of Alesi but they were always in the mix from beginning to end (or abandon). What I'm saying is back in the day you could see each driver drive the car their own way, there was a signature that came out of the way the car behaved on track. Today, there is very little of that coming through and there is a torrent of information (most of it useless) beamed at you through the TV screen. To sum up the argument: I can't be nostalgic for an era I didn't grow up with, therefore, while nostalgia is a factor for some people, there has to be more than nostalgia that made the "good old days" good.

[@raleighsexton7734]

I'm a 69 year old American. Not your typical F1 fan. I've been fascinated by F1 since I woke up early one Sunday morning (before anyone else in the house was up so I could watch what I wanted on the brand new black and white TV thing in the living room) and discovered blurry, distorted images of little cigar shaped cars speeding through some little coastal town's only streets between hay bales and the ocean. I was 9 and I was amazed at how fast the cars whizzed by the cameras, driven by madmen like Brabham and Hill who appeared to be defying death every second. I only got to watch about 20 minutes of that race because it was televised by a station normally too far away from my little eastern Oklahoma hamlet to be seen, but I happened to be watching before the local stations signed on and covered the signal. I was hooked. I've been a Formula 1 fan ever since. There has never - NEVER - been a bad F1 season since. Every driver is brave and every car is incredible. Why are they all so special - because there's always so much intrigue, so much politics, so much money inequitably placed, so much Ferrari drama, and so much sheer hard work put in by the people whose names we never hear. I've gladly picked sides on every F1 controversy from half way around the world, written letters on how to solve problems to AutoSport that actually won me an author signed Ayrton Senna biography (no, the FIA did NOT take my advice but the editors sure liked it!). I know who Edd Straw is, Mark Priestley, and Aidan Millward even though I've never been on the same continent with any of them (not counting COTA). The best F1 season ever is always this year's! But I also know who Scott Dixon is, and he's the best driver I've ever seen. He makes do with dominating for decades some minor league series in my little bush country, well enough to earn laurels from the Queen of the Empire. That series happens to race circles around my beloved Formula 1 and I thoroughly enjoy it, not least because for an extra $30 I can buy an all access paddock pass and press the flesh with all my heroes and watch races from places F1 fans will never be able to get to. F1 is the pinnacle, but "it ain't for the racin'" as my friends say. We just like to argue about the dramas and self importance displayed across the pond. It's fascinating, but it's never been close racing, it's a spectacle. You want racing? Take a look at why McLaren got their collective hat handed to them at Indy this year. When everybody runs the same thing and there's not near as much money involved, it gets real close, real quick, and everyone has a chance. Am I saying F1 is bad? No, just different. It's not the racing, it's the drama. People talk about Williams like their pathetic and they should be despised, or felt sorry for, or some such. It may be 3 or 4 seconds slower than a Mercedes (don't tell me it's the same engine, you'll have to prove to me that Lewis ran that serial number last week before I buy that) but it's still a damn fast car and I'd jump at the chance to squeeze my old fat ass in it to run a hot lap on a go kart track! Will they win? Probably not. Did George Russell do the best job for them at Monaco? No. Kubica was well ahead of him until he got knocked off the track. If I was that kid, I'd seriously worry about how I looked if the best I could do was outqualify an old one armed guy by a tenth or two in the same car. The point of this diatribe is that it's the bullshit that makes F1 such a spectacle. Every other kind of racing is better racing, including Formula E. But I look forward to watching every race and I read as much as I can from every source I can find, so I can chew the racing fat about the goofiest, greatest series on the planet.

[@andi36356]

The only aspect I liked more from the mid 2000 era, that isn't related to the car aesthetics, was the One-Shot Qualifying. There were some fun upsets thanks to stuff like front runners making mistakes, mid tier teams trying risky strategies or just changing weather conditions. And I believe it did make sponsorship more attractive, especially for lower tier teams, seeing how the cars had guaranteed onscreen time. But I can't simply call it "better" since I can see its flaws and counter-arguments. And a fun story about the sound: My mother used to like F1 more during the V10 and V8 era. It's not because of the racing or anything because she doesn't even watch it. She liked the sound because it made her fall asleep very easily and for some reason she doesn't get that with the V6 hybrid sounds. She suspects because it's quieter but then again she's not really sure why she found the old sound so calming.

[@AidanMillward]

andi36356 they should replace the top ten shootout with it. I remember they did one shot qualifying to stop Schumacher waiting for everyone to rubber the track in for him and he could get pole by doing one lap at the last possible minute.

[@BungleBare]

Aidan Millward How about replacing Q1 with one-shot qualifying, run in championship order, then running Q2 and Q3 as normal. The first of the runners might clean the track for the others, bin it, or get the worst of the weather. Some you win, some you lose though, and if a team builds a car that can’t follow and pass others easily then that’s going to hamper them on days when Q1 didn’t go well for them. Basically, you pays your money, you take your chance. Design your car to help your driver carve through the field, or maximise times they run at the front? Well, that’s a decision a team will have to make .... Full parc ferme rules would still apply from the start of qualifying. Doing it this way should mix up grids, and would probably even out any luck over the course of a season. The cream would still rise to the top, but races would be a bit more varied. Plus there would be the Brucie Bonus of guaranteed TV exposure for even the slowest teams in the first part of qualifying, which wouldn’t hurt those looking for sponsors. Safer too, as there would be a maximum of 15 cars on track at any one time, rather than 20. Just an idle thought .....

[@CM303898]

Very interesting listening to you quoting the figures. I too am not reallllllllllllly one for the nostalgia brigade, but in you closing, I considered that maybe the "F1 was better back in the day" sentiment must be due to possibly closer title finishes. I haven't run the numbers, so I don't know which seasons were signed, sealed, and delivered by the champ with 4 races to go. What we do know was that mechanical retirements were objectively higher, and whilst we all say that we don't want to watch only 8 cars finish a race (and Liberty Media wouldn't want that), by having the spectre of mechanical failure looming in the air, the overall title battle could swing wildly. Certainly 2006 would have been a corker of a showdown had Ferrari not had its first mechanical DNF since Germany 2001, in Japan; Schumacher would have gone to Brazil with a 2 point lead, and who knows if Ferrari would have risked the "go out guns blazing" engine they threw in as a result of the Japan engine failure, which ultimately lead to a fuel pump failure in Qualy, a 10th place start, and a battle with lower cars which lead to the puncture and ultimately the infamous yet unrewarding drive through the field. A great "What it..." ANYWAY! My point is that the cars are simply SO high tech and durable, that they last forever, have half a billion sensors on them so the teams know when they think they're going to fail, and consequently can swap a power unit and take a grid penalty, and everyone finishes (barring some crashes), excluding the odd random failure. The cars are simply too reliable and the teams know when they'll fail, so shock reliability retirements don't swing the title balance as often anymore. All this leads to extremely reliable cars and teams, that run off with championships. Sure we can draw comparisions between Mercedes 2016 and McLaren 1988, but 2016 was saved from a white-wash by one engine failure, and a teammate collision. McLaren's season was nearly a guarantee as pretty much all the teams focused on the upcoming 1989 N/A engines, leaving McLaren to almost whitewash the season by just being good. Mercedes started their era on the front foot, and thanks to high reliability, they savagely fought for a near white-wash of a season. I think when people speak of "the good old days", they probably speak of seasons where the title battle stayed open until late in the season. '91 was won with 1 race to go - between 2 drivers battling from 2 teams, '92 was won with 5 races to go '93 was won with 2 races to go - between 2 drivers battling from 2 teams, '94 was won at the last race - between 2 drivers battling from 2 teams, '95 was won with 2 races to go - between 2 drivers battling from 2 teams, '96 was won at the last race - between 2 drivers battling from the same team, '97 was won at the last race - between 2 drivers battling from 2 teams, '98 was won at the last race - between 2 drivers battling from 2 teams, '99 was won at the last race - between 2 drivers battling from 2 teams, '00 was won with 1 races to go - between 2 drivers from 2 teams, '01 was won with 4 races to go '02 was won with 6 races to go '03 was won at the last race - between 2 drivers battling from 2 teams, '04 was won with 4 races to go '05 was won with 2 races to go - between 2 drivers battling from 2 teams, '06 was won at the last race - between 2 drivers battling from 2 teams, '07 was won at the last race - between 3 drivers battling from 2 teams, '08 was won at the last race - between 2 drivers battling from 2 teams, '09 was won with 1 race to go - between 2 drivers battling from 2 teams, '10 was won at the last race - between 4 drivers battling from 3 teams, '11 was won with 4 races to go '12 was won at the last race - between 2 drivers battling from 2 teams, '13 was won with 3 races to go '14 was won at the last race - between 2 drivers battling from the same team, '15 was won with 4 races to go '16 was won at the last race - between 2 drivers battling from the same team, '17 was won with 2 races to go - between 2 drivers battling from 2 teams, '18 was won with 2 races to go - between 2 drivers battling from 2 teams, '19 was won with 2 races to go - between 2 drivers battling from the same team, '20 was won with 3 races to go '21 was won at the last race - between 2 drivers battling from 2 teams. At the end of the day, whilst it looks like it's always been close, in the last 8 seasons, the same team has won the WDC, and Lewis Hamilton has either won, or been fighting for the WDC in every single on of them at the last race of the season. That just wreaks of "BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORRRING". Sure, don't blame the man, but that's a sure-fire way to annoy fans. Think then that "the good old days" were when "the engines made a nice noise" (aka 2013 and prior), and we can see 6 times in the 10 seasons prior to 2012, the title battle went to the last race of the season. In fact the 16 seasons from 1997 to 2012 saw 9 last race showdowns between drivers of different teams. A further two were battles to the penultimate race. The entirety of the V10 and V8 formula eras (1995-2013) - 19 seasons, saw 10 last race showdowns, and 2 WDC sealed in the penultimate round. 12 out of 19 in eras which started with very poor reliability, low points paying positions (top 6 and later top 8), and smaller points variations. These days, drivers in teams on a run typically can carry that momentum. I think that's where the "F1 was better back in the day" rhetoric comes from...

[@timford3599]

"At least the engine sounded good." LMFAO

[@adampetten5349]

1999, 2000 and 2003 were very competitive.Barichello set the record for most 2nd place finishes in 2004. That's kinda interesting.

[@miy1925hassun]

The only I can definitively say was better(for me at least) back in the day was that F1 was on free-to-air TV so I could actually watch a race. They sort of rectified that with F1 TV though.

[@AidanMillward]

It's cheaper for me to have the V8s for a year than Sky Sports for a month

[@rideroundandstuff]

You still can watch F1 in regular television for free. Just not where you live, I guess. That's not really F1's fault.

[@BungleBare]

I ride around and stuff Well it is F1’s fault, for taking Sky’s money in exchange for exclusive UK broadcast rights behind a subscription paywall. They could have taken the view that free-to-air was the best option for the teams, as it would have guaranteed higher viewing figures and more sponsorship exposure. Good of the sport? Nah! Highest bidder wins. 💵💵💵💵 That was in the pre-Liberty days though, and things, while still being run very much as a business, now don’t seem to be as “short-term money grabbing” as they used to be.

[@DJBubbleBoy]

A bit late to the party here, but I've been watching F1 since I was a kid in the mid to late 80s, and while there are cars and circuits that will always be dear to me, the product was most definitely NOT better back then.

[@ahoneyman]

The lack of privateer teams now is dissapointing. The whole shoestring rung what you brung ethos brought out so many fun characters and half baked ideas. Who doesn't like seeing Roberto Moreno manhandle a half developed car built with zip ties? The man was an artist.

[@davidp.7620]

The beat thing of the "good old days" were engine faillures. You could be leading by a lap but still lose the race at any time

[@QXZ9027MKII]

Top notch Sir. Loved the detailed unbaised analysis. Have to say the end of argument line "but at least the engines sounded good" is spot on. Thx

[@noxvi4753]

This didn't age well at all. This is the most boring period of F1 we've seen 8 years of complete dominance (8 because I already know they're winning next year) the FIA have done nothing to stop them they've enabled them go be where they are and it might continue after 2022. I don't get this, getting called a boomer because you said it didn't used to be this boring? Come on we can't even pretend it's been interesting since 2014.

[@AidanMillward]

Noxvi the fia changed the regulations after just three seasons, banned mercs oil burning, banned FRIC and the other truck suspension system they had. And every time they’ve worked a way to gain back the performance.

[@noxvi4753]

@@AidanMillward the 2017 regulations were not meant to slow down Mercedes they were made so the cars would get faster. Oil burning was also banned for Ferrari not a Mercedes exclusive. F1 is also an entertainment they've gotten a lot of fans in the last 2 years. They've already started walking away from the sport, it is not sustainable and they cannot afford to have the sport dominated anymore. Mercedes has a weakness just like Ferrari in the 2005 and the FIA know it.

[@Pudgemountain]

If it weren't for the fact it might be too expensive and maybe ridiculous, it would be an interesting test to see if they allowed teams to choose their engines like they could in 60s, 70s and 80s, see if some teams keep the V6 hybrids and others go their own like V8s or V10s but then see if the bigger engine is really the better way to go or would it be too fuel consuming and too heavy compared to the Hybrids and could they be more powerful or it could just be a waste of money, oh well it would still be interesting.

[@DoctorHver]

Only thing interesting about F1 post-Schumacher's 1st retirement is the fatal crash in the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix, mainly for the fact how monumentally stupid that accident was.

[@PaulGPixelBike]

My time is 2007-2013. I think it was pretty interesting. Engines still sounded good, cars looked great till 2009, championship was decided in almost every of the last races, many controversies, like Piquet crash or McLaren Ferrari spygate.

[@gestapo81]

the old days had real fans. an overtake between Prost and Senna or Schumi and Mika felt like a Champions league goal and i was not complaining. those complaining about not enough overtaking where the "fans" that FIA brought with the DRS and shitty Pirelly tires to try an bring in more money in the motor-sport. It's like bringing in Taylor Swift in the opera Carmen, to try and sell more tickets -something will look cheap for the real opera fans.

[@bloqk16]

The aspect I recall from F1 racing of eons ago: The marginal reliability of the cars added elements of suspense that's been lacking in F1 cars of the past 25 years. F1 cars of the modern era, with the development of strengthened materials, are phenomenally reliable when compared to the 1960s into the '70s. Whereas, back in that era, the lead car didn't have a lock on victory until it received the checkered flag, as problems as late as the last lap could be: Clutch Ignition Loss of oil pressure Flat tire (or tyre) Suspension Blown engine Electrical Transmission Steering Shift lever Battery Alternator Throttle linkage Fuel pump Leaking fluids Radiator Floor pedals (clutch/brake/throttle) Would anyone like to add to the above list? I contend it is the utter reliability of the modern F1 cars that contributes to the impression of the races being boring.

[@duster0066]

Nailed another one. Great races are rare. You learn to cherish one when you get it. I agree the Aussies put on the best races today. The cars and tracks are interesting, and they have a knack for producing racing shows.

[@sirwoollyjumper4893]

To be honest, the earliest I can remember watching F1 was around 2003, (I was born in 1996). The best memories I have was always the amazing engine noises, Jordan's Black/Yellow & Jaguar F1's amazing British Racing Green livery with the white leaping cat (well, it was amazing in my opinion), and of course, scouring the catalogues and eBay for the Scalextric models for that and the previous season! I don't think I've been much help. Haha!

[@AidanMillward]

Sir Woolly Jumper I had a 91 Minardi and a 95 Benetton in Scalextric.

[@deabreu.tattoo]

The only thing I miss from the old days (80s) is you're varied the car designs were. You could paint them all the same colour and still tell them apart.

[@marshallmarthes]

People now are just complaining coz Lewis is winning, see George had only one race and everyone forgot Mercedes were dominating, haters just don’t wanna see Lewis win and that’s why they come up with all sorts of excuses

[@Logan912]

So, essentially, F1 just sucks regardless of the season. (It's a joke. Please don't hurt me.)

[@mrbones2235]

Correct

[@SamuelSantos_]

This year Brazilian TV replayed the 1988 Japanese GP on the anniversary of Senna’s death, most boring race I’ve ever watched. While Senna going through the field was certainly great to watch, and must’ve been super tense in the context of the championship, I’ve never seen a race with the field so spread out. No era is necessarily more exciting than the other.

[@mikesummers-smith4091]

A onetime colleague was as a child taken by his father, who had some sort of job in motorsport, to a race. It was one of those times when you could choose between something like 3L normally aspirated and 1.5L turbo. One team had gone out on a limb with turbo, which everyone else had abandoned. He remembered the noise of that car starting up as being like tearing silk. It rolled forward a few yards, spluttered, and died. But yes! it sounded good.

[@_NoDrinkTheBleach]

I mentioned on a twitter thread recently that the elevation of mechanical reliability has destroyed the illusion of perceived parity. The reason why backmarker teams like Minardi were able to score points back in the day is because it wouldn't be unheard of for more than half the field to retire from any given race. Now outside of the occasional random kablammo, the majority of the teams are finishing races. Maybe not on the lead lap, but seeing the checkered flag. There actually is genuine parity now, but it is divided into a natural order of top teams, mid teams, and barely afloat teams. If the early 90s cars were as reliable as the current ones, the results might be similar. More overtakes, closer finishes. But as it was, most races ended up being spread out because teams would be nursing cars to the finish, while the best car on that day would drive away from everyone else.

[@seanokeefe703]

When the silver car set the speed record on the Autobahn before the war, that was racing

[@timyo6288]

f1 is shit now, doubt i will ever be tempted to watch it again. i watched every session of every race from 1995 to 2013/14. can't understand how anyone likes F1 post DRS

[@VOLHans]

The gimmicks of DRS and KERS are what ruined it for me.

[@XBR4Da]

13:23 they ended up doing that. Watching the old races on the youtube channel and the f1 archive are what got me back into f1

[@ryklatortuga4146]

H16 vs V12 Vs V8 V10 - terrible V16 Supercharged.... yes yes

[@battleofwills7189]

I've been watching some Monaco GP's recently, from 1977 - 2004. The modern Monaco track is a more technical and twisty track than in the 70's and 80's. This is mainly due to the changes made to the track after the exit from the tunnel onwards. Of course, the cars are much different.

[@jamesgentry13]

Or are the cars today too big for the Monaco track?

[@battleofwills7189]

@@jamesgentry13 - They may very well be too big now. Definitely something to consider.

[@jamesgentry13]

@@battleofwills7189it was narrow enough in the late 70s and 80s and those cars were much smaller

[@TheInsaiyan]

Cars are absolutely HUGE nowadays. That must have an affect. They look fairly good on camera, but they totally out size LMP1 cars by a factor of at least 1.5. And much bigger than 2000s F1 cars

[@battleofwills7189]

@@TheInsaiyan - Yeah, I just watched Aiden's vid on the Ferrari F2004. I had no idea modern F1 cards were that much bigger. Is that because they have to accomodate the hybrid engine and all the other tech?

[@kylelewis4685]

I'd take the late eighties. 1) Different engine configurations, the engines sounded good, and they all sounded different. 2) Full grids to the point where we had to have pre-qualifying to sort them out. Sure, most of those teams had little to no chance to win, but variety adds spice and shows that it's possible to get into the sport. 3) Mechanical unreliability added drama to the races. Today's cars are amazing from a technological point of view, but they are too reliable. F1 race lengths where originally set to present a challenge to reliability. Now we would need 6-hour races to present a reliability challenge. 4) Pit stops are too fast and predictable. We need to limit the number of pit crew workers and bring back refueling to make this part of the TEAM element of racing. F1 has always been unbalanced at the top. I have been a fan since the early eighties and going into most years it's a 2-team race. The biggest issue with the current rules set is that it offers no way for anyone to catch up once a team has a big advantage. look at the winners up to the year 2000 and you can see until McLaren from 88 to 91 only one team had ever won more than 2 consecutive constructors titles. Ferrari won three in row in the seventies, but that's it. Cheers man another great video Totally agree with you on the v-10 era being no better or worse than the current one.

[@LordMidichlorian]

Wall of text incoming. Truthfully, my nickname should be Walloftextman. We're currently at 1989 with the McLaren Senna-Prost domination, except 40'' is the distance between first and twelfth now and back then that was the distance between the first and the second. And by the way: when the fight between Schumacher and Montoya fans were saying F1 was crap, unlike ten years ago, Nowadays I still hear it mostly referred to the Senna-Prost years. On overtaking: go search for "FIA [year] F1" for series of races highlights and you will find back in the eighties there was only a fraction of the true overtakes we have today. Watch those highlights and you'll find 95% of overtakes were either a car with plenty of fuel overtaking someone who was saving like crazy to be able to reach the finish line of a car that had made a pitstops to get new soft tyres overtaking someone who had decided not to make pitstops and where in the dying gasps of hard tyres. That is 95% of overtakes weren't battles at all, were the car behind being allowed through by the other car ahead because he was ni no way, shape or form able to contest the position. (writing this while I listen so perhaps you end saying it later in the video). Oh, I hadn't come across the "DRS is fake overtaking". Well, let me tell you, it still allows for far more combat for position than in the eighties. On fans not knowing what they want, there was a poll made som seasons past that make it crystal clear: «- What do you want the most in a F1 race? - That drivers can over take. - What is your favourite circuit? - Monaco.» If you really wanted overtakes above all, you wouldn't vote as your favourite the one circuit where overtaking is the hardest. And do you know why I was a fan of motorbike racing, starting by 125cc? Because in the 125cc overtaking was constant. You had the first eight pilots in this order and the next curve none was in the same position and in the next they changed positions again and again and agai. The result? Since overtaking happens so much, no overtaking has any relevance at all. The whole race is pointiess until the last lap. For the overtakes to be meaningful and carry all the tension they can, they need to be difficult. Granted, get them too difficult and you lose the tension because you know it won't happen. For F1 being right in overtakes, you need to strike a very fine line of balance in which: overtaking is possible so you can expect it at any moment and a driver overtaken may fight to recover position, it needs hard enough you don't see cars exchanging positions every other curve so any overtake can be final and decisive. Extremely difficult to see happen in individual races, impossible to get consistently thorough all the championship in all circuits. And that's a problem with all sports: people whining because not every match/race/whatever the sporting event is called is an spectacular classic. Spectacular classics remain in our memories for a reason: they're special, meaning they can't be consitently repeated. I suspect a part is played by journalists and commentarists who don't like the sport so they demand it to be classic every time so they don't get too bored having to watch sports they don't like but their job forces them to cover and that then trickles to their audience.

[@matthiashellwig5722]

Ah Aidan that is the hairsplitting-question. I am 41 now and started watching F1 in late 1991 with 1992 being the first full season; first question "was tat somehow connected to the rise of a german driver?" Second question "Was it better or the young boy more impressed?" Some things did change, e.g. independant teams; driver exchanges mid-season and so on - but still this breathtaking moment before green lights! A more tennis affiliated friend asked me about the Silverstone occurence and my first response was sth like "What do you expect? You put young males in a high-speed car, boost their egos above Mt. Everest and really think there is never ever an accident?" Yes I do have more opinions to that collision, but thats not the point. The old days are combined with being younger, less experienced and more exited. I don't sit there with friends anymore the whole night to be more or less present if an overseas race starts at 06:00 am, I sleep soundly (and soundful) and check results after getting up.. Bear in mind that this Internet (does it still exists?) wasn't that present in the old days, no chance to get your overdose racing 24/7...Respect, like your videos and don't miss university.

[@jpatterson4042]

You, sir, are 100 % correct on this ; but the engines sounded good 🤣

[@deanholt6599]

I’ve watched F1 since 87 and I’ve enjoyed watching nearly every season. Other than 2001 to 2004 were it was I bit dull. I do have a bit of nostalgia for the late 80’s early 90’s (when the engines sounded good 😂). But the last 10 years have probably been my favourite as the car are more reliable and every one up to 4th place doesn’t get lapped about 5 times 😂.

[@bernhardire2557]

I've never heard a F1 car in person, but I experienced a similar "downgrade" when I went to DTM races. I've been on one of the last V8 races, and to the first of the 4pot turbo races. I liked both sounds, the I4 on its own doesn't compare with the V8 of course, but the addition of turbo noises makes up for it. I mean who doesn't like turbo noises? 😉 As for the sheer volume, with the V8s I was wearing earplugs, with the 4pots I didn't, so in the end what I was really hearing was about the same volume I'd say...

[@TotoDG]

Finally fixed the Pressing Issues title card.

[@denisbatista6010]

I've been watching your channel for like a month now, and i think its quite good, congrats

[@ofs82]

Would be interesting to balance out the amount of overtakes against completed laps in the race, because there were so many more retirements in earlier eras. As a result you might see more overtakes now, but largely between inconsequential cars deep in the field, whereas in a bygone era those cars may have blown up by then, and the fact that there was tension as to when, rather than if, engines, gearboxes or electrical systems would pack in and who it would affect, meant that seemingly insurmountable gaps would still have tension because cars were inherently unreliable, which nowadays they aren't and even if something goes wrong, more often than not the guys in the pits can analyse it and work around it. Plus, there's also that with the radio we know all about the problems now, so there isn't the tension of wondering WHAT is happening, like when Schumacher was stuck in 5th gear and had to complete a race like that, which we only found out after the race. Also, the increased bulletproof reliability of the cars and the difference between the best and worst cars has changed racing. It's not necessarily better or worse, it's just different. The worst driver on the grid now is far better than the worst driver on the grid then, and the worst car on the grid now is far better than the worst car on the grid then. Yes, there'd be huge time gaps from the top cars, but picking your way through hopeless paydriver backmarkers who didn't watch their mirrors was much harder then, and now the improved technology has meant that what would be a minuscule difference in those days is a vast, yawning chasm today - the margins of victory have become much smaller, but the chances of bridging those time gaps have become much smaller too. You've made comments about cycling before. Back in the 60s and 70s, a five minute time gap between major contenders could be made up in a single stage. Nowadays, a five minute lead is seen as virtually impossible to bridge unless the leader has a complete meltdown. The main reason is that, like in F1, there is a much smaller gap between the best and worst rider in the bunch, and therefore the small gaps between them are much more significant than they used to be (plus the support riders that will be chasing are of superior quality, discouraging risky attempts to gain lots of time, in favour of multiple smaller, more conservative attempts to gain small amounts of time). I see this as analogous to F1. If there's the possibility of taking several seconds a lap on somebody, then a car ten seconds back with a few laps to go is a potentially exciting threat. If everybody is within a second or two of each other, then the chances are not only are they unlikely to bridge that gap to threaten the leader, but that they aren't even going to try to, and that's the thing that becomes highly frustrating.

[@davidp.7620]

In my opinion, DRS shouldn't be used for passing, but for catching up (for instance, while you are between 1 and 2 seconds behind the car in front). That way we'd reduce the effect of dirty air while overtaking would stay hard

[@sirdetmist3204]

Id take 2002 because cars as slow as 2014 are not F1 cars. Also the overtaking argument you made was weak, we want more real overtakes. As for saying the 2000s werent better i dont agree at all, 2001 and 2003 were decent, 2006 was also decent, 2007 was good, 2008 was amazing, 2009 was an amazing story, thats 6 good or decent years out of 10, since we had 2010, maybe the best season ever, 2012 and thats it, so just based on good seasons the 2000s were 3 times better. Then you have things like the sound, how the cars looked from the late 90s all the way up till 2008 was just awesome, no stupid nursing fuel, no annoying tires that fall apart, i admit it wasnt perfect but i think it was going in a better direction than it is now. 2004 cars with slicks and no driver aids and more emphasis on ground effect and i think you would be golden, it also felt more extreme back then because they were going at it 100% through the race, like i remember watching the 2004 monaco GP, and watching Schumacher putting in these laps to try and jump someone in the pits and he was flying, it was so awesome to watch a master at work just flying around the circuit at basically quali pace, that doesnt happen now thanks to the fuel and the tyres.

[@AidanMillward]

The 2014 cars were f1 cars. No matter how many asterisks people try to put next to them.

[@sirdetmist3204]

@@AidanMillward i know they are in name and regulation but they were so slow, they were like f1.5. I started watching F1 in 2003, in was 5, i really got into it in 2008, even boring races could hold my attention just due to the speed, sound and so on. In 2014 all of that just got lost, it felt like such a backwards step and i know technically they were more advanced but speed is what matter and they were awful and ugly AF.

[@AidanMillward]

Stephen Whitemore the 2008 cars were slower than the 2003 ones.

[@sirdetmist3204]

@@AidanMillward they were, but still faster than 2014 and the race pace was also still high as they didnt have to cary 100kg of fuel. Im saying the 2014 cars got too slow, they slipped below a threshold of speed that made it not feel like F1, kzbin.info/www/bejne/eZ6xl5VnmrubpZI Just look at the difference between those, its insanity, im pretty sure that Williams in that is on race fuel, so that just shows you how far F1 regressed, how an you buy into that. To me F1 has just lost something, there a feeling i used to get from it and i dont think its nostalgia, because i enjoy watching races from before i was born and ill be honest i dont remember 2003 and 2004 thats well, it just doesnt feel right anymore, i dont what it is either and i cant put my finger on it, its probably many little things, to me it feels far too sanitary now and i cant even really tell why because its not like any of the era ive watched was unsafe and F1 was sanitised in the early 2000s so i really dont know what it is, i guess it could be the combination of the tyre saving, fuel saving, sound, lack of competition, many tracks i think arent very good and the image of it changed, as soon as F1 started trying lose less fuel it just turned me off of it, 2017 spiked my interest again but it still wasnt enough for me sure they were faster but you still had the awful sound, the bad tyres, slow race pace from the fuel and so on. F1 used to feel like a series of short sprints and i think it made the races a little more interesting, i also feel like F1 is too restricted, you get all of these cool new ideas and they get thrown out like the double diffuser, blown diffuser, F duct, DAS and so on and they just get canned, well if teams cant innovate then how can the pack ever close up, id really like more freedom, id like more engine freedom, i like the idea of people being allowed to use whatever engine they want or maybe a selection as V6, V8, V10 and V12 all have their drawbacks and merits, just make so they have to fall within a power and rev range. I actually like the idea of a hard cost cap and opening things up a lot so you get new ideas and if you win with a better idea i dont see the issue as you had a cost restriction, then it really comes down to the talent of the engineers, like why cant we have fan cars, 6 wheeled cars, cars that stand out and look different, if people do this within a cost cap i see no issue, with F1 as is if you left it for 20 years all of the cars would converge into one design as its the most efficient, thats not interesting to me.

[@comrademcsalty7676]

The best F1 seasons were when you had Murray Walker and Martin Brundle as commentators.

[@AidanMillward]

Comrade McSalty I remember those days as Brundle cleaning up Murray’s mistakes 😂

[@BungleBare]

Aidan Millward Murray just enthusiastically carried on through the mistakes. Everyone had to correct him at times - not least James Hunt, who did it bluntly in the early ‘80s when they didn’t really get on, and more diplomatically as time went on and they became good friends. Wouldn’t have Murray any other way though- he could even make a short rallycross heat, with four mismatched cars that strung themselves out with big gaps over the course of a race sound exciting.

[@filtrakioldhorborn]

2012 must be the best season in my opinion "tHe eNgInEs SoUnDeD GoOd TOO" and the racing was really fun to watch too

[@TeifiValley123]

Really good video. Smashes the rose tinted glasses to bits. However, I've never rated f1 as a racing series. The cars inherently produce poor to average racing, which is what I'm interested in. I think racing should be exactly that, Close & wheel to wheel. Compared to other four wheeled racing series, f1 ranks near the bottom for me.

[@709mash]

Nostalgia is a powerful drug. It's hard to see past it sometimes. People forget how one-sided F1 used to be. McLaren domination in the 80's, Williams in the early 90's and Ferrari from '00 to '04 come to mind, just to name a few. The current field is actually closer than it has been in a while.

[@kylegoodman5196]

I honestly think that people miss the danger element to the sport, especially considering how long we went between Senna and Bianchi dying. When former champions like Mario Andretti and Sir Jackie Stewart say that F1 has gotten too safe basically everyone starts riding the pussification train and acting like these current drivers don't have balls of steel. People act like its their fault the tracks have large runoff areas, the cars crumple rather than bursting into flames, they don't run fully open cockpits, and they don't run on the Nordschleife etc when it was guys like Sir Jackie, Niki Lauda, Mario Andretti, and all the other greats from the Wonder Years of whatever era who were demanding greater safety in the first place.

[@jman_s]

I'm younger and I would like to say the real good old days were from 2009-2013, a great era where there was one team dominance and one driver winning all the... WAIT A MINUTE. You got me. But at least the engines sounded good.

[@orionexplorer]

OK, I'm 3 years late to the party. I started to follow F1 from the US in the 1970's, I was in my teens then. It wasn't so much the drivers I remember but the excitement at the Grands Prix. I went to the USGP-West (Long Beach) for 5 years funning (1979-1983). What I liked was the way the cars looked, sounded, and these were the top drivers in the world. There were factory teams, and independent teams and so many cars entered you had to have pre-qualifying on Friday just to see who was going to be able to qualify on Saturday for the race. Was there politics? Oh Yes, Bernie was involved with FOCA and the battle between FOCA and FISA was unreal. But you could try out new ideas, the Lotus 79 with the first full ground effects car, or Renault with their turbos. I don't remember how good the races were, but the cars were different, new ideas were tried, some serious legends were made then, such as Andretti, Lauda, Fittipaldi, Maas, Schecter, Villeneuve, Watson, and many others. Maybe the races did not have as much passing as now, but they were exciting.

[@domzbu]

Sorry but it was better, the tracks were ballsy, the cars sounded great & didn’t have KERS & DRS Mickey Mouse bollox which have killed racecraft. The drivers and personalities and the stewards weren’t nearly so mumsy.

[@Spermwhales93]

Whenever anyone says that "the good old days" were the best, I point them to the 2012 season where there were like 7 or 8 different winners (including Maldonado's shock win at Barcelona and Alonso winning at Valencia after starting in 11th) and we got Michael Schumacher's final podium and what would have been his final pole position if he hadn't got that grid penalty. No, the V10 era didn't always produce the best racing. We need to accept that even perceived golden eras of the sport will have duff and boring races.

[@Dogman36]

John Cash is an F1 channel you need to see

[@mrjacksack8592]

Thank you. I really enjoyed this episode.

[@TheLockbeard]

All Australian’s (especially myself) personally hold the Brits responsible for allowing the Neighbours to remain on TV.

[@AidanMillward]

TheLockbeard I stopped watching just after Zeke got amnesia after falling out of the boat or some shit.

[@TotoDG]

The Australian Neighbours is pretty bad too.

[@AidanMillward]

SovietOnion we get the Aussie Neighbours. I stopped watching about ten years ago

[@TotoDG]

I apologise from the bottom of my heart. The stories are absolute horse shit anyway.

[@AidanMillward]

SovietOnion they are now, last time I watched it I was in the hospital and Toadie got shot.

[@ivaneurope]

Was IT really good say in the 90's or 00's? Well.... In the 90's the only seasons with some intrigue were 1990 (Prost v Senna Chapter 3), 1994 (though Schumi should've won it a long ago if he didn't pass Hill at the f'n formation lap), 1997, 1998 and 1999 (where Schumi and Irvine lost the title). 1991 was McLaren's year (Williams FW14 dominated the second half), 1992 and 1993 were both dominated by the robotic Williams FW14/15 and only Senna's class gave McLaren any hope, Hill made too many mistakes in 1995 while in 1996 it was known that as much as talented Schumi was he'd struggle to defend his title in the Ferrari so it was free for Williams to take (the question was Hill or Villeneuve). Still 50:50 though In the 2000's the first 5 seasons were "The reign of terror" by Ferrari and Schumacher. 2005 and 2009 were dominated by Renault and Brawn respectively (McLaren and Red Bull charged too late) and only 2006, 2007 and 2008 had any real intrigue til the final race. 3/10 Now in the 2010's, yes, Red Bull and Mercedes ruled the roost, but in 2010 and 2012 Alonso in the Ferrari was close to win the title

[@AidanMillward]

ivaneurope in 2010 Alonso, Hamilton, Vettel and Webber could have won it.

[@klashman7278]

You forgot about 2003. Schumacher won by one point!

[@JazzSaxUT]

I kind of look at F1 the same way I look at golf. When I started watching F1 (1986), the drivers were really fascinating. Golf was the same. They all seemed unique. Now, golf seems very corporate. Can't really tell the pros apart. I feel the same way about today's F1, so, in my mind the 1980's to early 1990's were really fun to watch.

[@countjobula]

these videos are great. I love your opinions on sport v entertainment. keep doing what you are doing

[@jayhsn5245]

I feel you are right nostalgia plays its part, I feel that last year was as good as any season overall for entertainment now the drivers have become diverse, I still love watching the old seasons especially from 1970 to 1993, the vast array of teams trying to compete in the late 80’s and early 90’s just made it seem more interesting and colourful. Another great vid! Thank you.

[@f1jones544]

I've written on various F1 boards for over 20 years. I don't think I've ever heard anyone's opinions repeatedly be in agreement with mine to the degree yours are, nor using the same reasoning. Get out of me head.

[@f1jones544]

Btw, I was 21 in 1988 and Prost/Senna started with nothing but McLaren processions and ended with atrotious driving by the "best ever." The late 80s were terrible compared to the first half of the decade. Worst era ever. The cars were more exciting (but a lot slower) than modern cars, yes. But not the racing, not close.

[@billmcdonald4335]

The year Pete Aaron took the WDC. No other year can match that. Our Pete didn't have a drive after that disastrous Monaco debacle, he sat out the French GP, but then he scored a seat with the upstart Japanese entry and went on to win the WDC, the team winning the WCC. Miraculous - although we lost the great Jean-Paul Sarti at Monza. . .

[@lucasbailey8878]

Best reference ever!!

[@namenamename390]

I get that the old engines sound great, I can't deny that, but I always wonder when people demand them to be brought back, what would the actual benefit be? Sure, it would have an impact on human psychology, as we associate loud engines with faster cars, but there would be no actual effect on the racing itself. Nothing would actually change if we had V8s or V10s again, assuming that the rules for the bodywork and such stay about the same.

[@mariocristiano4412]

In my opinion what sucks are the huge run-off areas and that drivers get away with every mistake. Why their isn't grass beside the track and then again tarmac. So when a driver makes a mistake he would pay with his laptime and not his life. But in my eyes what the main reason is why I think nowadays sucks are the stuarts. Because of every tiny wheeltouch the stuarts or the rc gives away timepenaltys. I agree that a driver gets a penalty if he risk the life of other drivers because his driving style (e.g. Senna) but not because every wheeltouch or if somebody run off the track (e.g. Vettel in Canada 2019). This sport is dangerous and if someone of the driver can't deal with it they are in the wrong sport. That's why, and it might sound crazy, I think it was better back in the days because of the danger and no stuarts giving penaltys. Also more talented drivers should be prefered than the driver with the biggest bank acc. PS: Bring back the fucking V12, V10 & V8. Please make the sport great and exiting to watch again!!!!!

[@Durbanite2010]

There was a lot mentioned about the sound of the V10s from the 2000's but what about the V8s from 2009-2013? I'd argue 2013 was one of the best F1 seasons in history - the last year of the 2.4 litre V8s, 5 different race winners over the course of the season (with 4 different teams claiming wins in the first half of the season, though Vettel and RB won all races after Hungary), 8 different drivers getting on the podium over the course of the season (Vettel, Webber, Hamilton, Rosberg, Raikkonen, Grosjean, Alonso and Massa), few retirements (Monaco had the highest in one race with 6, probably due to the nature of the track)...

[@awordabout...3061]

By 2022 we will have had eight continuous years of Mercedes dominance. Even the staggeringly brilliant Ferguson teams weren't on top for that long. Sebastien Loeb is the only figure in any sport I can think of who has had similar dominance for so long, and there's no reason to believe that Mercedes won't be on top in 2022 as well, given how they've aced every single regulation change since they re-entered the sport. How long can F1 realistically continue with a single team (and given how insanely focused he is, probably driver!) rolling up every single title?

[@jamesbehra2690]

Btw very good content! I belive the seventies were the best of all.

[@jonmoore176]

I think two things I struggle with, F1 being on pay TV and one team bar the four season 05-09 winning multiple seasons in a row. I also thing the season is too long now 16-20 races for me is the sweet spot. Agree though each era has it good and bad points and that we are unlikely to ever get gripping stuff every season.

[@EpicGamer-kj1tj]

Tbh the engines sounded good

[@heliumtrophy]

I watched races since 1991/2 or rather, I watched the Monaco GP from that year because it was by my foggy definition as a young kid, elegance and daring and just so, so cool. I don't know who was winning and I didn't care, the sounds were a minor point but Monaco couldn't have seduced me any more if it tried. Which is probably why of all the races, it's the one race on the calendar I most look forward to and the one I'm fiercely protective of. Sure there's no overtakes but that's not the fucking point of the race. Take Ricciardo's victory last year where you're wondering whether his engine can last the distance, was it terminal? Can he still make it? There is drama there, you just have to be patient. Same with this year's Monaco GP, are Hamilton's tyres going to last? Now I know that there's practically some element where I feel like the drama is pre-fed into us but almost year on year, I'm suckered into it again to the point that I'm in love with the spectacle all over again. When I hear people bitch about it, and there are elements to which I can understand, I'm defensive and think "if you want overtaking, why don't you watch fucking IndyCar or something." I've tried watching it, I'm just not interested in it. In fact, while I've enjoyed many races that I started watching religiously as a kid since 1995, I'm rather disappointed that, due to safety reasons of course and Bernie, tracks have had to have modifications and while we're still at a certain circuit, it's just not the exact same as how I felt it was as a kid. Even Monaco has made some minor adjustments but I can look at Monaco and still feel the same adrenaline rush in watching the race as I always did. For example, I love Spa Francorchamps as well but the old bus stop chicane is something I loved and now that that's gone, I still love Spa but it feels like there's something missing. I don't really give a shit about V10 or V8 engines or whatever is in the back of any car. If the car moves, that's all that matters. I don't even drive a car in all honesty. I guess part of me is excited or was excited about F1 going to all these destinations. The Tilke dromes have dampened my enthusiasm of that a bit and from watching the old races from the 60s and all that, there is that feeling that it's rather cut off from the world in these circuits, hence I go back to Monaco where it truly is man and machine versus nature. I wouldn't want all the races to be like that, it would cut off the specialness of Monaco. I guess if someone's first race was at Donnington or something like that, they'd want to see a race back there because it was special for them. I also won tickets (I don't know how many times I've mentioned this on KZbin or online for that matter) to Monaco and I guess there's always something in it for me there. And I won't tolerate anyone who says that it needs major remodifications to stay on the circuit. Monaco is F1 and F1 needs Monaco (fuck Ferrari). Looks like I've written another War and Peace style comment on KZbin then......I'll never learn.

[@DieToteHose93]

one thing you didn't mention which might have an influence on the overtaking numbers: refueling refueling might take away on track overtakes by moving them into the pitlane, but increase tactical drama in the race tyre only strategies (i mean the kind we have now) also brings some excitement but not the same as refueling + tyre strategies not yet saying which is better, just that this might be another point to think about and i also kind of think of the 90s and especially early 2000s as glory years, mostly because i think of those cars as being more of a beast than todays cars, they might have TC which lessens their beastiness, yes, but i think of them totally and utterly undrivable without (2004) which i dont do about the current cars

[@PaperBanjo64]

A week ago I watched the 1990 Italian Grand Prix and that race was over on lap 4 when Jean Alesi spun out, this week I watched the 2018 Belgium Grand Prix and the Japanese Grand Prix of the same year...and those races were far more entertaining...Vettel coming through the field...twice...Max Verstappen over coming a 5 second penalty...sure, Lewis Hamilton drove off to a big lead, but the battles on track behind him were very entertaining.

[@HeavyMetalGamingHD]

Honestly the 2018 belgian gp was not good. It had barely any overtakes. Vettel overtook hamilton on the kemel straight and the race was basically over after lap 1.

[@yellow_x522]

Back in 2017 I went back to watching F1 religiously after many years of ignoring it. I checked out the Montoya vs Schumacher 2002 video and saw the comments praising everything about the past while bashing everything about current F1. I agreed with everything they said and I enjoyed watching that little battle. In 2019 I tried watching the full 2002 Australian GP. It was interesting at first but immediately the Schumacher/Montoya battle ended everything became boring as fuck. Not even the v10 sound could save it. It really got me wondering recently if all those things people say about the past is full of shit. I even tried watching many classic races in the 80s 90s, 2000s, 2010s etc and can confirm that they were not all great. The more you know, I guess.

[@interstate366]

One thing I took away from this video is that I want F1 to visit Laguna Seca.

[@aprilkurtz1589]

My days were in the mid sixties to mid seventies. I quickly learned to not have a favorite driver, my first and last favorite drivers were killed. At least Emmo and Stewart survived. But the engines sounded fucking great!

[@collinblack8474]

I was a fan of Australian supercars and F1, why because to me it was a 180mph+ parade laps, now I'm a fan of Indy and Nascar, why because it's a lottery of who will finish 1st. Does anyone remember when Montoya lapped the whole field including the Ferrari. Thanks for sharing this with us.

[@landoflogic107]

Indycar has the same problem, but much more ridiculous. We have old guys who want the sport to go back to the USAC days when the season had four or five dirt sprint car races thrown in and all the open wheel drivers competed just like any other race. It’s a ridiculous notion, as the cars are so different from Sprint cars now and none of our current drivers really raced on dirt. USAC got rid of the dirt races because the pavement cars had become too unique. If you look at the cars from the 50s- early 60s they were pretty much glorified sprint cars. But by 1970 that was no longer the case, and it was costing a lot more money for teams. To think we could just up and turn back to that is crazy.

[@KaoruSF]

The great times were the late 70s than the 80s, period, things amazing overtake of Piquet on the young Senna, different cars with different types of engine, the discovery of new types of aero like the ground effect, 6 wheelers and various others