Stoddart calls for refuelling back in F1

After all the cries about a ‘boring’ season opening Bahrain Grand Prix due to the banning on refuelling this season, former Minardi boss Paul Stoddart has added his two cents to the situation ahead of round two in his native Australia this coming weekend.

Stoddart, along with many other formula One personalities, believes that Formula One is headed for disaster if what happened in Bahrain is repeated, and as far as he is concerned, due to the durability of the tires and the no refuelling, there are several circuits that could see fans walking away in droves….

"At certain tracks, the racing will be very boring," Stoddart told the Herald Sun. "That's not good for Formula One or the business of Formula One. In Monaco, cars will be able to run the full distance without stopping. That's not good. There are some races, like Valencia, where it will be so boring that people will walk out or fall asleep. In this case, common sense needs to prevail. Something needs to be done."

In Stoddart’s opinion, refuelling could be easily reintroduced in order to save the situation, either that or have Bridgestone supply different tires, However, while producing tires may take a little while, refuelling could be reintroduced in Europe, as soon as all the teams agree….

"I think it would be very easy to fix it up. They just need to take the brakes off and leave it up to the teams," added Stoddart. “Re-fuelling can't be brought back until the teams get back to Europe, but then it should be fairly easy. There are re-fuelling rigs available to the new teams, and it's only an extra two people on the pit crew for the stops. Different tires would also do the job, but that could be a bit harder."