The fundamental reset F1 may need in the post-coronavirus world

Formula 1's position as the pinnacle of motorsport has inevitably meant that much of the focus of cost-saving efforts amid the coronavirus pandemic has revolved around grand prix racing.

But F1 is not the only category that is going to suffer because seasons are suspended; every series at every level of racing will be taking a major hit thanks to the lack of sponsorship, prize money and corporate spending.

It is also not the case that a cure that can help shore up F1's future - like a dramatically cut budget cap, reduction in personnel numbers, or changes to the technical regulations - is going to also be an answer for the challenges that categories like Formula 2, Formula 3 or IndyCar face.

Every series has its own headaches right now. While restricting car development is an easy way to slash F1 budgets, finding such obvious solutions further down the racing ladder do not come so easily.

One company right at the centre of the debate about how businesses recover from here is Italian racing car constructor Dallara. Its group CEO Andrea Pontremoli has some fascinating views on the direction F1 should take: and it's one that perhaps would not sit well with its participants.

"In the one-make categories [like IndyCar, below], the single-seater accounts for 7-9% of the overall team budget," he says. "The biggest costs are logistics and staff. In Formula 1 the discussion is different...

"F1 spends very high budgets in research and development. If components were frozen, the savings would be immediate, and there would be no impact on the show."

Such a charge to restrict development of F1 has long found resistance from competitors, who argue that it goes against the category's DNA, and prevents the element of technical competition that has been a core attraction for many fans.

While that may well be true, Pontremoli suggests F1 also needs to focus carefully on the root of the current technical differences between teams. For right now, being able to spend more money rather than having the best ideas is a more important factor in deciding who wins.

"Today, if a top team manages to make a step forward with more resources, we see a situation that certainly does not help the show, which should be one of the key features of our sport," he explains.

"In the one-make categories the single-seater accounts for 7-9% of the overall team budget; the biggest costs are logistics and staff. In Formula 1 the discussion is different..."Andrea Pontremoli, Dallara Group CEO

"I believe that fans want to see competition, which is what we see in IndyCar. There are always areas where a team makes the difference, even in the United States series where there are more competitive teams than in some other series, but without spending huge amounts of money."

Pontremoli thinks F1 needs something of a mental rewire to rekindle its touch with what the fundamental art of competition is about.

Grand prix racing was perhaps at its best when it was brainpower pitted against brainpower - and the best ideas won. That should actually be one of the positive side effects of a budget cap, that F1 no longer remains a cash-raising competition but instead becomes a battle of who can spend its resources the smartest.

"On the cost reduction front, the best result you can achieve is standardising everything," Pontremoli says. "But if everything is the same, you remove the technical competition, and a team obviously wonders how it can make the difference.

"The challenge, for those who have to study the new technical rules, is in finding a balance between these two aspects.

"Let me give an example. Does it make sense to spend a lot of money, as F1 is spending now, on a gearbox? Wouldn't it make more sense to make a common one for everyone? The savings would be immediate and substantial, and it would only be one less development area that costs a lot of money. There are many examples like this."

Pontremoli is clear on one thing: even having the same parts as other teams does not necessarily guarantee you similar levels of performance, so standardisation does not automatically mean the art of competition is less.

"There are always areas where the difference is made, and this is the challenge," he explains. "In IMSA and WEC, we are involved in the study of the new technical rules, and there is a great attention to the costs aspect.

"What they ask us is very indicative: if we can spend €100, how is it best to spend them in order to improve the competition?"

Of course, F1 needs to tread carefully in how far down the spec route it goes. Part of its attraction has been - and must always be - that of technical innovation and being a proving ground for cutting-edge development.

It's that quality of motor racing at all levels that means in the post-coronavirus world - whether that be 2021 or even further down the line - there is a chance that motor racing can become a shining light for other industries.

"We have always been careful with costs, there are companies that visit our factory to understand how we can produce cars at the cost that we offer, or to understand how we can do an aerodynamic study with a very small budget compared to the standards," Pontremoli adds.

"It is an aspect that goes beyond the world of motorsport, and I am sure that motorsport has once again a chance to become the 'research and development' example from which the automotive industry increasingly draws and will draw.

"In road car context, the importance of basic concepts such as weight reduction is being rediscovered. And it is a challenge today, given the high safety standards.

"We have big companies asking us for studies on how to decrease the weight of their road cars, or aerodynamic studies to improve efficiency."

But there is one aspect that unifies both F1 and all other categories: the need to go racing again. The longer there is no action, the more teams are being financially crippled by the lack of income offsetting their outgoings.

Pontremoli thinks it essential on many levels that racing is not abandoned in 2020.

Grand prix racing was perhaps at its best when it was brainpower pitted against brainpower - and the best ideas won. This should be one of the positive side effects of a budget cap

"In my opinion, it will be crucial for all the championships to get back on track in 2020," he says.

"If in some way it will be possible to have a season, even with a reduced number of races, there will obviously be losses in economic terms compared to what was originally planned. But it will still be possible to recover part of the budget, and in the end there will also be fewer expenses.

"If, on the other hand in 2020 we do not return to the track, then the problem will be much more serious, because there will be no income from sponsors, TV rights and events on the track. Then the situation would become much more difficult."

There is also a much bigger reason too, and one that proves the show is always king.

"I think that going back to racing in 2020 is also important to keep the relationship with the fans alive," he adds. "We must not risk losing them, because other sports will start soon."