[Mark]

Hamilton fears over boring F1

Lewis Hamilton has bemoaned the lack of overtaking in Formula One after a processional European GP in which he finished second.

Originally Posted by eurosport.yahoo.com

The World Championship leader expressed fears that the sport can be "boring," adding: "We do need to be able to follow closely and do more overtaking.

"Look at the last race in Valencia - there was no overtaking at all - so it can be a bit dull. I definitely support the move to try and make F1 more exciting."

Hamilton's comments came after news of design changes to F1 cars intended to aid slipstreaming. Smaller wings will be introduced for the 2009 season, as well as alterations to the rear diffuser.

These changes have been shown to reduce the effect of 'dirty air', which disturbs the aerodynamics of cars following others around corners.

Hamilton said: "You couldn't get close to other cars [at Valencia], which is the same at a lot of the circuits we have.

"I think we put on a great show, but you saw there wasn't any overtaking. I don't know what the answer to that is, but I do know I was working my ass off in the race and doing the best job I could."

Hamilton is not the first driver to discuss the difficulty of slipstreaming this season. Last week, Toro Rosso driver Sebastian Vettel told the German magazine Auto Motor und Sport: "You cannot get closer than about one second behind."

A perceived decline in overtaking has long been a complaint of F1 fans who remember the thrilling races of the 1960s.

Reasons cited for the reduction in wheel-to-wheel action include aerodynamic changes and the removal of overtaking-friendly circuits, such as Paul Ricard and Kyalami.

"The new circuits are potentially just flat and boring," added Hamilton.

Despite these concerns about overtaking, F1 Racing magazine reported in June that there were 270 on-track overtaking moves in the 2007 season. Felipe Massa topped the table, completing a total of 20 overtaking manoeuvres.

Article here!