Sky Sports Launches Dedicated Formula 1 Channel in the UK

After months of waiting, Sky Sports has launched its new, dedicated F1 channel in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

Subscription-only Sky Sports F1 will show all 20 rounds of the 2012 FIA Formula 1 World Championship live, including full coverage of every practice session, qualifying and the race itself.  The free-to-air BBC will show live coverage of only half the races.

The BBC did have the full TV rights until 2013—however, budget cuts and a change of direction (and the belief that everyone loves dancing shows and home makeovers) led to a cost-cutting "deal" to share the coverage with Sky until 2018. 

Fans were outraged that the BBC got the short end of the stick, and even tyre supplier Pirelli expressed concerns.

But it happened, and it's what we're stuck with.  So how does the new Sky channel stack up?

The People

The channel will boast an admirable line-up of on-screen talent.  Former driver and commentator Martin Brundle has moved over from the BBC, and to F1 fans he needs no introduction.  Brundle will be joined in the commentary box by the experienced sports broadcaster David Croft.

Croft spent the last six seasons providing F1 commentary for BBC Radio 5 Live, and was briefly—and somewhat bizarrely—heard excitedly referencing Internet phenomenon Leeroy Jenkins on the BBC TV coverage during the Japanese Grand Prix in 2010 due to a technical problem.

Sky has also poached Ted Kravitz, Anthony Davidson and Natalie Pinkham from the BBC.  Kravitz has worked as a pit lane reporter for many years at both ITV and BBC, and will continue in the role at Sky.

Part racing driver, part commentator, Davidson drove 24 races in F1 and has worked alongside Croft on BBC Radio since 2009.  He will provide expert analysis for the practice sessions.

Originally famous as the subject of rumours regarding a relationship with British royal Prince Harry, Pinkham has been involved in sports broadcasting since 2006.  She worked as a pit lane reporter for BBC radio during 2011, and will continue in the same role at Sky.

The presenting team will be headed by Simon Lazenby, best known from Sky's live rugby union coverage.  He'll be joined by former Sky Sports News presenter Georgie Thompson and another BBC refugee, Steve Rider.

1996 F1 champion Damon Hill will join the team for ten races, assisting Brundle in giving fans the expert analysis only a former driver can provide.

Sky have spent the past few months advertising the channel in various places, and much hype has been built up.  Is it justified?

The Live Action

For the coverage itself, only time will tell, but it looks promising.  The presentation and commentary team Sky has secured is arguably the best overall package F1 has ever had, and the interactive service looks like something special.

Viewers will be able to choose from up to nine content streams, giving viewers the option of which camera they wish to watch at any given time.

Sky will also show no advert breaks during the race, which had been a fear of fans when the coverage moved to a commercial station.  So all looks good on that front.

It should be a noticeable step up from any F1 coverage the UK and Ireland has ever received.

The Channel Overall

A glance at the TV guide for the coming week reveals some watchable bits and pieces—season reviews from the late 1980s and interviews with legends such as Sir Jackie Stewart and Emerson Fittipaldi.

There will be, of course, the track action as mentioned above.  A small portion is time is dedicated to F1 news, a little bit of winter testing footage and previews of the first race in Melbourne. 

But that's pretty much it.

Viewers hoping for days filled with original F1 programming (or full re-runs of classic races) will be disappointed by the opening week.  The channel is very much part-time, and the first week is very heavy on repeats.

The channel officially launched at 8pm on Friday evening, with The F1 Show—2012 Preview.  If you missed it, worry not—the two-hour special is repeated seven times before the weekend is out.

Interspersed with further repeats of that, the 90-minute Formula One 2011 Season Review is shown eight times between now and next Friday.

And weekday programming only begins in the evening. 

On the evidence of the first seven days, it's unlikely even the most hardcore fan would watch more than a few hours per week outside the live broadcasts.  Sky could have got away with only running the channel over the three days of the race weekends.

A "Sky Motorsport" channel, featuring lesser forms of racing as well, might have been a better idea.

In Short?

The live coverage looks like it will be excellent.  The channel itself looks like it'll be a waste of space on your TV guide.

Obviously I hope Sky will prove me wrong and get round to showing classic races or in-depth technical programs—classic races are indeed on the way, but it's unclear how many will be shown, or when.

On the evidence of the opening week, the "dedicated F1 channel" line is more of a marketing tool—what you really get is the track action, a couple of news programs and more repeats than BBC3.

But then, I suppose 24 cars driving round a track is all we really want, isn't it?

[Note—this is an opinion piece, based on my impressions of opening week of the channel.]