USF1 to open new doors for fans

Speaking at the launch of the team on Tuesday, sporting director Peter Windsor revealed ambitious plans for a more interactive experience for the public - including television shows and a more open attitude at the factory.

"Well certainly something I have learned just in the time I have been here in Charlotte is how good a job the NASCAR teams do for the fans," said Windsor during the official launch on Speed TV.

"We are in the entertainment business and we want it to be a TV-led Formula One team. We are to be that by definition, being so close to Speed TV, and we are also going to have our own TV production facilities inside our factory headquarters.

"We are going to make this a very fan-friendly team, not only in the States but globally. We are going to design the fan-route - they will be welcome to come to our HQ, they will be able to tour, look at an F1 car being designed and built. They will be able to touch and feel an F1 team for the first time.

"It will be a lovely experience to come here; we will have a state of the art facility that will be as good as anything you'll see in Europe. It won't be McLaren or Ferrari because obviously we have no history but we will do it our way, and that's compatible with being here in the US.

"If you look at guys like Michael Waltrip and the way they operate their team, that is a case study on how to make motor racing fan friendly."

Windsor believed that a change of attitude to the public could be all it took for F1 to finally be embraced by America.

"One of the problems with Formula One, (is that) the way the teams present themselves in America has always been very difficult for the fans to grasp what F1 is all about," he said.

"It is very technical, with lots of money, but nobody ever talks about it and you can never see the technology. Obviously we have an opportunity here to sell Formula One to our fan base and we have got a lot of F1 fans here."