did you notice during the interview with the crown prince and Bernie. Bernie was lip syncing with the prince!
Short video of police throwing tear gas into a Costa coffee in a Bahrain mall this evening. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnQawqgfTc4&feature=youtube_gdata_player Couldn't see any provocation or even protest, just a cafe full of people minding their own business.
Nasty. From the Friday Press Conference: This is the issue and, whether or not it's for the teams to stand inflexibly to that position given the contracts they have in place, it's a pity that point has been bandied about without any real commitment by Ecclestone and in contravention of FIA statutes.
It just sounds so hollow and utterly disingenuous but so do all the bland assertions coming from the F1 people.
I consider it disgusting that a team has to compromise its performance because of fears over safety. Honestly, what are the FIA playing at? And that's not even mentioning F1's use as a political tool.
Really has been a horrible weekend already, I just hope it serves as an incentive for the teams to get their act together over the governing of the sport. I'm sure we'd never have been in this position if FOTA were responsible for choosing the calendar.
This is just speculation on my part but only one driver has said anything remotely critical (and it was only remotely critical) of the situation and whether or not F1 should be in Bahrain - that was Nico Hulkenberg. Bob Fernley has been vocally extremely supportive today of the decision to race there. I suspect that the decision not to take part in FP2 was a tacit protest, linked as it was to safety concerns, against FOM and the FIA. It's possible that Force India did not feel compelled to sacrifice track time but wanted to make a point.
They've devoted more than half of BBC News 24 to it today, incuding interviews with a professor of sport from Brighton University with expertise in boycotts, various human rights experts and a Bahraini government bloke. Kate will be on at 7:00pm. I never realised 'Manama' rhymes with 'banana' not 'Panama'.
I heard it pronounced different ways by people who should know so I'm still not sure what to believe I'll have a look at News 24, thanks for the pointer.
Totally agree Stephen. Surely Jean Todt and the FIA knew what they were letting themselves into? And yet again Bernie Ecclestone's utterances are exactly that of a senile old man. Some of the things he says (and does) is an embarrassment to the human race.
