This is the Statt Mann Baby!!  Time to Scatt a little bit.

Many in America couldn’t care less that the opening of the Formula One season is just three weeks away.  Rest assured I’m not in that camp!

This is the last year we’ll be watching Formula One as we’ve come to know it. 

The Concorde Agreement which governs F1 expires December 31st.  The agreement dictates the relationship between the FIA, the Formula One teams and Formula One Administration, especially how they divvy up their money.

F1’s racing will be super special as Fernando Alonso fights his McLaren teammate for the headlines and everyone else for a third straight championship.

The racing off the track, though, is the drama to watch as teams and manufacturers fight the sport's leadership for a larger stake in the sport.

They’d like to get beyond the influence of one or two wealthy silverbacks to something more equitable and, frankly, a larger return on their own considerable investments.

National economies depend on F1's success.  That's hard for many Americans to understand.  Racing’s influence here usually doesn't go far beyond the Sports Section.

Still, the American racing community is watching how F1 remakes itself. How F1 survives its makeover may tell us something about how American racing will survive the one it needs.

Peace.