Why Formula One is the best sport ever!

I'm not really known for my sporty attitude. I don't like football; I consider any game you can play in a pub not really a sport; I don't spend a fortune on a season ticket to see something I, quite frankly, could get a damn-sight lot easier from the TV. I did watch various events throughout the year, when they're on, because they're on. But there is one sport that I watch religiously whenever I can, start to end, and that's Formula One. F1 is pretty good, I have to admit. I've kept my eye on it since it moved from ITV to the BBC a few years ago and it can be quite gripping at times. Yes, there are the occasions where one driver gets ahead and the rest just follow but motor racing is 9 times out of 10, fairly unpredictable. Anything can happen at any time from the simple to the insane. With the 2010 season finished, I thought this would be a nice tribute to the best sport in the world. In the words of Murray Walker, "And they're go, go, GO!"

There's been a colourful History
Ever since the internal combustion engine went into the first horseless carriage, man has always wanted to race it. If it moves, the next best thing to do is make it go faster than any other competitor. They did it with horses, steam trains and boats so the car was always going to be raced. It all started to become a lot more popularised by the French Grand Prix way back in the late 1800s up until Formula One was created after the Second World War in the 1950s. This created names such as Stirling Moss, Juan Manuel Fangio and Alberto Ascari and showing car manufacturers such as Mercedes-Benz, Ferrari, Alfa Romeo, Bugatti and Maserati to name but a few. It's a genuine sport and everyone involved wouldn't be doing what they're doing without the past. It has come such a long way since then....

It shows who has the toughest metal on the track
Ferrari and Mercedes-Benz are still on the track to this day, along with Renault and Cosworth all of which supplying engines. These then branch off into the teams; Scuderia Ferrari, Scuderia Torro Rosso Ferrari, BMW Sauber Ferrari, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes, Mercedes GP, Force India, Renault F1, Red Bull Racing Renault, AT&T Williams, Lotus Racing, Hispania Racing and Virgin Racing respectively. There's a few names there but they're all fighting it out. They can all produce as well as each other. For the 2010 season just gone, the latter Cosworth engined machine were further down the field but last year Force India were at the very back, yet they managed to drag it back this year. So, next year, we could be in the same sort of area with the slower, lower classed cars racing with the big guys. Now that would be fun!

You don't have to remember many names
The season just gone had the most teams in a while - 12. That's only 24-odd drivers you have to remember! Not an entire team of 11 and another team of 11. And they could be any 11 out of a million-gazillion teams on this earth. F1 is just a lot easier.

Cars Crash
Slightly morbid, but it happens. It add excitement and drama. A driver could be winning right up until the last lap and he bins his car into a barrier or another car and he loses his lead. Which shows that a driver has to have his concentration and wits about him all the time. Anything can happen in a race. Sebastian Vettel lost two front wheels during a qualifying lap. Mark Webber's Red Bull famously gave him wings when he hit (driver) and took off in one of the seasons biggest incidents. Luckily for Webber, he walked away like he'd only bumped into a bollard rather than heading skyward. It goes to show how well these cars are built and that they cocoon the driver in collision. Anything can happen. Racers have met their fate behind the wheel of an F1 car in the past, but in the past 16 years, it hasn't happened since.

The track locations are spectacular
If you watch the Formula One, chances are it's being broadcast from a very nice place. Races are held all over the world. Places like Monte Carlo, Abu Dhabi, Singapore and Valencia. Drivers and their team travel all over the world in one season with a mix of tracks that take place in short narrow streets or purpose built tracks in the sticks. And with F1, locations give different climates which means it could be totally different to the last place the drivers were. It could be hot and sunny, or it could be cloudy and wet, and these factors make each race different adding more to that 'anything could happen' side to the battle.

It doesn't take away your precious time
F1 is only held on a Sunday. And even then it could be every other Sunday. Not a lot is on the television on a Sunday so it's the perfect time to sit down, chill and watch the race. There is the qualifier on on the Saturday, which gives an insight to how the leaders are doing but this isn't vital to the race as...And since ITV don't show it anymore, there's no breaks meaning you don't miss anything. Fantastic.

Anyone can do well
With racing, if you can stay ahead, that's good but if you get ahead, that's better. This past season just gone, Sebastian Vettel won the championship at the age of 23 making him the youngest driver to win ever. The previous year Jenson Button won the championship after years of battling with Honda. The year before that Lewis Hamilton won. Michael Schumacher became the oldest F1 driver to race. You don't have to be super good to do well and get recognised. You don't even have to win to get praise either. Niko Hulkenburg gained pole in the Brazillian GP, which was bloody good!

And without being sexist...
Women have been known to race in F1 and do well. It's not common now but we could bet that it may well happen again. Vicky Butler-Henderson and Jodie Kidd are well known for being petrol heads. So even though it may not have happened in while, it can happen again: The ladies driving with the guys. Oh and, just saying but F1 drivers wives and girlfriends are better than Footballers wives and girlfriends. Not counting Mark Webber in this though. Google search and you'll see how correct I am.