Remote control

Formula One -- it is not what it used to be. We used to have first class drivers fighting hard to win. Ayrton Senna used to discipline rookies, such as Eddie Irvine, by punching him in the boxes. Piquet wouldn't even wait to get back to the boxes and would punch Eliseo Salazar right on the track.

Now we have uninspiring test drivers as racers. Car races used to be decided on the track. Now they are being decided in the boxes and the winner is radioed in to the front-runners who wave the winner through. What's next? Car racing by remote control with a dummy inside just to spray the champagne at the podium? This does not augur well for Bernie Ecclestone's plans to float Formula One in the stock market. And I don't think sponsorship would come easy for this type of race because people won't want to watch it.

OSVALDO COELHO

Jakarta