Rebels - Renault, Honda, Toyota, BMW-Sauber and McLaren-Mercedes have threatened to set up a rival series after 2007.

There has been utter disarray in F1. I wrote regarding the same last year here, here and here.

Max Mosley has now set a deadline for the rebel teams. BBC adds further:

They want a bigger share of revenues, more say in F1’s future and are upset at plans to limit technology from ‘08. Mosley, president of the sport’s governing body the FIA, wants to give independent teams without support from car manufacturers more of a chance by limiting the budget needed to be competitive to around £57m a year. Ferrari’s budget, the biggest in F1, is reputed to be as much as £287m, with Toyota not far behind.

Are restrictions on technology, number of teams really the answer? In a free world, open economy it doesn’t work. The simple demand-supply works. If the F1 authorities continue to try and boss around, the break is very much a real possibility. It has happened in cricket with Packer and has threatened to happen in cricket again recently (I wrote regarding the same here, here and here). Individuals or individual bodies do not relish seeing their scope restricted. Self interest has to be looked into by the authorities in-charge. Without that, a team or an organisation cannot function. Often people try to take this the other way around and the problems arise thus.

The Belgian Grand Prix has been cancelled for the year in order for improvements to the Spa track.

Wikipedia does write on the termoil in a paragraph:

There is an ongoing thread to the presence of the Grand Prix in the Formula 1 calendar in 2006. The organiser of the event went bankrupt in late 2005, and therefor the planned improvements of the race track and the paddock have not been made. The Wallon government has stepped in and provided the necessary funds but the work will probably not be finished before the date that has been given the Belgian Grand Prix. As of Wednesday, the word is that the Formula 1 race in 2006 is called off due to necessary improvements.

If the Windies cricketing problem is pathetic, F1 is no less. The latest fiasco regarding driver safety, arising out of Indianapolis opens a can of worms.

Coulthard:

Coulthard said: “All these rules - qualifying, single lap and 10-place penalty - they are not designed to wreck races but they have.”

Is the safety concerns of the drivers of paramount importance? Yes.
Do we need another fall out in F1? No.

The best thing would be to resolve the issues fast but that is unlikely to happen.

And now 6 of the 7 F1 teams will appeal against the penalties laid on them by F1.

Why should the F1 fan support the sport any more when after such a scandalous race ensued in Indianapolis, the F1 fails to look at the bigger picture and still shows no sign of unity.

Why should I follow a sport which had a scam due to a simple fact that the teams could not agree to race with 20 cars or not race at all and further disagreements follow within F1.

What is needed is a show of solidarity, concentrating on putting a better show for the next race rather than crying over who is to be blamed for a fiasco for which joint blame should be taken by every one involved in F1.

Whats the use of fining teams when they couldnt obviously put their drivers or crowd at danger.

F1 has lost several fans in the US and all around the world irrepairably. Will giving out free tickets and compensation to fans for the fiasco which was Indianapolis really make the fans turn a new leaf?

Its the least Micheling is bound to do but what has all the fighting inside the F1 insured even after the even took place?

You miss the big picture which is that fans are being lost every day with people calling F1 a joke.