For a sport to be enjoyable for the spectator it must be spectacular and easy to follow, unfortunately for the poor motor racing fan Formula 1 currently is neither. Granted it has always been a complicated business but for me that added to its attraction. I really enjoyed all the technical stuff, at least at a fairly superficial level. It certainly gives the sport a greater depth than the more simplistic sports, providing us anoraks something to think and talk about but now it's just too difficult to understand without detailed explanations and sometimes explanations of explanations!

Formula 1 cars are still spectacular live despite the fact that they are mostly nailed to the ground, with nary a twitch, let alone a pitch, lurch or dive. Their sheer sensory impact - speed, shape and noise makes them so, but television removes about 95% of this. One advantage that telly did have over watching live was that you could follow the racing easier, but that has largely been eroded as generally there isn't any.

Formula 1 is very difficult to understand and is increasingly counter intuitive. You can see what's happening but the reasons aren't as they seem. The fact that Driver A beat Driver B does not mean that A was quicker, or that C seemed to follow D round for most of the race does not mean he was lazy. Because of pit-stops D may have actually been racing B for position, though he never saw him in the race! The fact is that you can't begin to make sense of a race until various factors have been explained, something approximating to the truth gradually dribbling out in the week following the race.

In Turkey there was no doubt that Lewis Hamilton was on a three stop strategy - you could see that. However it was not a Ross/Schuey type of thing to gain advantage over more conservative, but quicker rivals, it was to do with concerns over the structural integrity of his right front tyre in the awesome Turn 8. In this long, long 4.5G corner the front tyre rolls over and a small area of it is worked very hard. Last year this caused a delamination of the front sidewall for several drivers.

Bridgestone strengthened the tyre and this year and only Lewis had a problem, apparently "he is a bit severe on the front tyre". Macca elected to three-stop him which compromised his race. In the post-race press conference Hamilton said that Bridgestone "made" them three stop, but this was later denied by the tyre company who said that they had requested that a middle stint be no longer than 18 laps, advising a 20/18/20 strategy. Hamilton did pass Massa for the lead on lap 24, but Massa's engineer Rob Smedley said that they had it covered and just had to calm Felipe down who went on to take a comfortable win.

This was Lewis's second tyre related issue of the weekend. In Q3 he chose to run the harder tyre despite the softer option seeming to be quicker. He later said he regretted that decision, then later said he didn't as his engineers had proved it was right for him! What I would like to know is just what it is about his driving style that causing these problems. When you consult motor racing gurus they mutter darkly about him "using the front end more" and "loading the front up progressively". I believe this to be to do with lines and turn-in points and style and other stuff and is the main reason why Lucy adapted so well to the control Bridgestones last year whereas Alonso, Raikkonen and Kubica struggled. Anyway, more explanation is needed

I would have thought this would have been an ideal topic for the enthusiasts' TV programme I've pleaded for before - expert analysis chaired by Martin Brundle, after all, pundits bang on endlessly about football where there is naff all to talk about! In this instance in-car footage could be used to explain precisely the difference in driving style between Hamilton and his team mate and thence Lewis's tyre troubles. Certainly, in-car is the only way Qualifying is anything of a TV event. Turkey was better, but at one point the Director cut from a car about to enter Turn 8 to Rubens Barrichello parked in his pit garage.....

Whatever the reasons, you have to say that Kovalainen is quietly doing a better job than Hamilton at the moment and his poorer results are due to circumstances beyond his control. In Turkey his race was ruined Kimi's endplate puncturing a rear tyre on the opening lap. He dropped to dead last and did pull some spectacular overtaking moves, but even so could only make it back to up 12th.

The collision also did for Kimi's chances. From the outside it looked like he had had one of his "off" weekends, but it seems that the damage to his front wing meant that he was driving a slightly lame prancing horse. In the circumstances we must be grateful he managed to come home third, keeping his Championship lead.

The Bimmers seemed to have slipped behind McLaren again, with Kubica fourth and Heidfeld fifth. Alonso did well to bring his Renault home sixth and unusually didn't show any petulance this weekend. Webber brought his Dead Bull home seventh. His team mate showed that in an increasingly complex world, some things are as they seem. There was a bit of vintage Crazy Dave, when he nodded off near the end of the race allowing Nico Rosberg to jump him for the last point. It's good to know there are some things you can still rely on...

Surely Crazy Dave must be pensioned off at the end of the season and so will not get to race under the 2009 regulations, designed to improve racing. These basically aim to reduce the importance of aerodynamics by shaving the cars of many of the increasingly bizarre looking sticky-out aero twiddly bits - hence their wake will be less turbulent and slipstreaming will be possible. Front wings will be semi-standardised and rear wings must be narrower, these should further clean up the cars' wakes. The cars will also be wider, providing a bigger tow.

The most cunning plan will be the return of moveable aerodynamic devices - some 41 years after they were banned. This is designed to get over the most common sight in in F1 today - one car closing up on another then getting stuck about 1 second behind. Next season the driver following will be able to crank up his front flaps (but only twice a lap - why?) to restore some of the downforce lost from running in the car in front's turbulent wake, slipstream up to it and hopefully draft pass - like MotoGP 'bikes do.

The return of slicks - long overdue - is another key factor, thus increasing the proportion of car grip which comes from mechanical means, rather than aerodynamics. This is a Good Thing as mechanical grip is a lot less sensitive to track position and driving style than aero, further increasing the drivers' options.

Finally there is KERS (Kinetic Energy Recovery System) - part of F1's "green initiative". This basically stores braking energy by some means, mechanical or electrical, which the drivers can use as they choose, it will give them an extra 80bhp for a few seconds to be used to pass or defend. Ferrari are not keen on this, not surprising when you consider the limited expertise they have at their disposal compared to some of the opposition e.g. Honda have already run a car with KERS. This is very much a Max Mosley initiative and some believe that if he does not survive, it may not go ahead.

All of this should increase the potential for racing and racing is spectacular and easy to follow, which is where we started. Hopefully next season we will be able to enthuse "Did you see the demon move B pulled on A?" rather than wondering whether he would have beaten him if his strategy had not been compromised by the deployment of the Safety Car just before his second pit stop etc etc....

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Rubens became the most experienced F1 driver of all time

Kimi shows off the high cockpit sides...

... for which Nakajima may have been grateful when Fisi jumped him!

Lewis got past Massa at one point but it signified nothing

Another faultless performance by the Scuderia

Third was a satisfactory result for Kimi after hitting Kovalainen...

...who pulled some spectacular moves but could only get up to 12th

Turkey belonged to Massa, Ferrari and Italy!

Click for FIA lap chart

Meanwhile...

2009 regs will see cars shorn of extreme aero twiddly bits...

....and the return of moveable wings. Forty years ago Matra used an electric motor to "control" theirs

What these poor guys have to do to earn a crust...

....but it's much more dignified than this! Click the pic

So how does Adrian Sutil get his own private chopper to get to testing at Ricard?

pics by Ferrari Media, FIA, Reuters, XPB, LAT, & Sutton