Kubica doesn’t understand call for exciting races

Jamie Woodhouse
Robert-Kubica-Alfa-Romeo-halo

Robert Kubica doesn't understand "boring" race criticism.

Robert Kubica doesn’t understand the recent criticism of Formula 1’s entertainment value, saying there has always been “boring” races.

Lewis Hamilton cruised to victory at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya and Spa-Francorchamps, sparking renewed criticism about the lack of excitement to Formula 1’s races.

But Pierre Gasly’s dramatic win at Monza was a welcome shot of adrenaline for the sport on a Sunday afternoon where Hamilton had intially looked destined to dominate out front again.

Hamilton himself has acknowledged that fans don’t want to see Mercedes leading all the time, but Kubica doesn’t quite understand the criticism, saying in all eras of Formula 1 the racing has been “boring” at times.

“To be honest, I don’t understand the criticism,” the former race winner told Motorsport.com.

“Formula 1 has always gone through different phases with boring races.

“The main thing for me is that some drivers said the past races were boring, but they can only see the race from their perspective.

At Spa for example, Kubica said in his opinion “there was good racing in midfield with Gasly, Perez and a few different strategies.”

“At the front, yes, it was boring, or let’s say it was a pretty lonely race,” he added.

“It’s normal for drivers to want to fight each other and for fans to want to see better races, but we have to understand how the structure of Formula 1 works and how these cars work.”

The current generation of Formula 1 cars don’t lend themselves very well to overtaking, so this means that wheel-to-wheel battles can never be guaranteed says Kubica.

“That’s not new either. I remember talking about this topic in my first year in Formula 1, almost fifteen years ago,” he explained.

“Of course, a lot also depends on the differences between the teams. If the gaps are a little smaller, you have more chances of better races and more excitement. But if we judge a race based on the number of overtaking maneuvers alone, then the story is very different.

“Sometimes a race can be very close and intense, especially if you understand the strategies behind it but without overtaking. I think we need to let people know what is going on because that could be a way to get them excited.”

Next up for Formula 1 is the Tuscan Grand Prix at Mugello which will also mark Ferrari’s 1000th World Championship race.

The high-speed sweeping turns of Mugello will certainly test the drivers’ fitness, but whether the layout will lend itself to overtaking remains to be seen.

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