RaceFans Round-up articles archive

A constructors’ championship battle just isn’t as exciting as a drivers’ championship battle – so it was with the lacklustre Chinese race that got a lukewarm press response. Jim Rosenthal bade farewell to ITV after another year in which the broadcaster took a backward step. The most disappointing omission from almost all of the race … Continue reading Chinese Grand Prix 2005 Media Review

It may have been a thrilling race with a heart-stopping conclusion, but with the England football team in action on Saturday it was never going to get much coverage. The Independent at least open their sports pages with the race. “A classic demonstration of the art of Grand Prix racing” hails David Tremayne. Makes better … Continue reading Japanese Grand Prix 2005 Media Review

Before launching into this week’s media review, let us pause briefly to reflect on the magnitude of Fernando Alonso’s achievement: the youngest F1 champion ever, at just 24 years old, and the first from his country. A shame so few newspapers also paused to do him adequate justice. Unsurprisingly, the divide between the quality Formula … Continue reading Brazilian Grand Prix 2005 Media Review

To an F1 fan, a wet race at Spa is about as good as it gets. But Fleet Street are still in love with the cricket, and ITV’s coverage was just plain awful. All eyes are on The Guardian this week with its much-vaunted launch to a new not-quite-tabloid, not-quite-broadsheet Berliner format. F1 gets an … Continue reading Belgian Grand Prix 2005 Media Review

With the tabloids still revelling in thier new-found interest in cricket, Formula One is basically left to pick up the scraps. The Italian Grand Prix may have been significant for the championship chase, but it was still rather dull, which also explains its poor billing in the Monday ‘papers. David Tremayne in The Independent has … Continue reading Italian Grand Prix 2005 Media Review

With sports editors whipping themselves into an orgasmic frenzy over the new football season, F1 coverage has become harder to find among the soccer detritus. Even a stonking race at a classy new venue cannot help it. This is not a phenomenon limited to the tabloids: Alan Henry’s piece in The Guardian languishes on page … Continue reading Turkish Grand Prix 2005 Media Review

There’s one sure-fire way to get Formula One splashed across the back pages of the nation’s newspapers: a good old-fashioned first corner shunt. Christian Klien obliged this time out, and the latest twist in the championship gave more cause for thought. Anyone looking to raise the international profile of Formula One could be forgiven for … Continue reading Hungarian Grand Prix 2005 Media Review

The German Grand Prix was not a high point for F1 in 2005. The championship battle more or less fizzled out and yet another McLaren failure gifted Alonso an unchallenging victory. It’s little surprise to see the quality and size of newspapers coverage has fallen this week. You can’t really blame newspapers like The Independent … Continue reading German Grand Prix 2005 Media Review

Jenson Button is the next Tim Henman as far as the British press are concerned. But that won’t stop Ferrari snapping him up. Don’t believe everything you read in the papers or, for that matter, in this week’s media review. Amid the frenzy of the British Grand Prix the tabloid heavyweights slugged it out in … Continue reading British Grand Prix 2005 Media Review

The French Grand Prix was as dull as ditchwater – there’s no avoiding that fact. Did the British press tell it as straight? And how did ITV-F1 cope with the Magny-Cours snoozeathon? The post-race media review reveals all. At long, long last Wimbledon is over. It feels as if we’ve had months of the tedious … Continue reading French Grand Prix 2005 Media Review

The nation’s sports writers lined up to condemn the travesty of a Grand Prix that took place in the United States. The June 20th newspapers did not make welcome reading for dedicated fans of Formula One. At least ITV made a decent fist of the broadcast for once. Ecclestone and Mosley have presided over a … Continue reading United States Grand Prix 2005 Media Review

The Canadian Grand Prix gave us drama, incident and a smattering of controversy. But did it capture the attention of the nation’s sports writers? Find out in our post-race media review. So, when was Jenson Button’s last retirement as a result of driver error prior to his Canadian crash? The Sun quote the man himself … Continue reading Canadian Grand Prix 2005 Media Review

We had a thrilling chase to the finish and ITV let us watch it all this time. Raikkonen’s heart breaking last-lap failure made big news in the British papers – or was it just because the football season’s finally over? ITV commentators James Allen and Martin Brundle did not see eye-to-eye on McLaren’s decision to … Continue reading European Grand Prix 2005 Media Review

So what was the big story after Monaco? The near-collapse of Renault? That stunning pass by Nick Heidfeld? Juan Pablo Montoya’s remarkable drive from 16th to 4th? Or just Kimi Raikkonen’s maiden win in the glamorous principality? If you answered, “none of the above,” then congratulations, because you kept in mind the British press’s negative … Continue reading Monaco Grand Prix 2005 Media Review

Kimi Raikkonen’s won a race, and so the F1 journalists roll out the inevitable ‘Iceman’ puns. Meanwhile, ITV apologised for their almighty cock-up during the San Marino Grand Prix. Before we get stuck into the papers, a word on ITV. Justly chastised for cutting huge swathes of the Fernando Alonso-Michael Schumcher battle in favour of … Continue reading Spanish Grand Prix 2005 Media Review

A resurgent Ferrari gave us a nail-biting race to the flag in San Marino, and with Jenson Button getting back on the podium surely F1 merited high mention in this week’s sports pages? We tell all in the media review… Monday’s Daily Star gives an adequate write-up of the San Marino Grand Prix, sandwiched gracelessly … Continue reading San Marino Grand Prix 2005 Media Review

Bahrain gave us a cracking race – but what did the wider world make of it? We take a look at the coverage of the Bahrain Grand Prix in the major British papers, in this week’s media review. Most of the Bahrain reactio focussed on the Fernando Alonso-Michael Schumacher battle, surely the first of many … Continue reading Bahrain Grand Prix 2005 Media Review

It’s the Monday after a race, so it must be time for our fortnightly game of “hunt the bits of F1 coverage in the national press.” Or, if you prefer, the Media Review… First up we have to give special mention to Stan Piecha of The Sun for simultaneously aggravating F1 anoraks and belittling the … Continue reading Malaysian Media Grand 2005 Media Review

F1 resurrected or just more bore? The national press react to the first round of 2005.