John Leicester in USA Today writes that “more than rain” is needed to make Grand Prix races exciting.

The underlying problem with F1 remains that it is still too difficult under normal circumstances for drivers to pass each other. That is mostly because of the way F1 cars are designed with such a heavy emphasis on aerodynamics — and that is the problem F1 teams and administrators must sit down together to solve. F1 cars are “so efficient that it’s difficult for even a fantastic driver to overtake another slow car,” Ferrari team boss Stefano Domenicali says. “That’s the point that we need to attack, all together, to make sure that we are able to solve it.”

Yet that’s precisely the problem that has plagued Formula One technically for more than 15 years.  Rule change after rule change did nothing, including those which, in early 2009, looked very promising. The only things that helped were wet conditions, which allow driver talent and car control to compensate for downforce, and refueling put stops.  The latter are gone, so like the European GP at Donnington Park in 1993, let’s pray for rain this weekend in Malaysia.

It Always Rains In Malaysia