COMMENT: Clear and present danger

Right now the sport I love is going through some serious growing pains.

Almost every category of motor racing is talking about ‘cost containment’. In Formula One it’s been a tough week with Caterham and Marussia going into administration, reducing the grid for this weekend’s race in Texas to just 18 cars.

Something has to be done to reign in spiralling costs but while we’re focussed on that is there an even more pressing issue? The worrying trend is motorsports drop in popularity among the younger demographics.

When I grew up I was mesmerised by the sound, smell and the competition. It consumed me and still does. With the exception perhaps of stadium events like Global RallyCross and SuperCross traditional motorsports are having to work harder to build and keep younger fans?

Gaming is seen by some as a massive threat to sport in the same way it is to the movie industry. While I was driving recently a business headline on the radio caught my attention. Twitch was sold to Amazon for a billion dollars. Like most of you I thought 'what’s Twitch?' It’s a video platform and community for gamers. They review games and chat about them but you can go there and basically spectate as games are being broadcast via the site.

As I type this there are 124,000 viewers for League of Legends. Pause and take that in for a moment. These are spectators for cyber competition.

Technology commentator @trevorlong has been a lifelong F1 fan and reckons there is still no substitute for being trackside to soak in the atmosphere. He also believes real-world motor racing can help bridge the gap.

“Imagine Lewis Hamilton regularly laying down simulator laps for mere mortals like us to try and beat," he says.

"Crossover of this kind resonates with the gaming generation. Sure, I can go and look for set-up data in forums or watch YouTube clips to improve my performance, but having a hero to benchmark yourself against is awesome! That kind of contact will inspire them to come or keep coming to real race meetings.”

The type of campaign Trev is talking about — bringing together gamer and racer — isn’t new. Nissan runs an excellent GT Academy program, which helps virtual racers graduate to the real thing and some racers like Shane Van Gisbergen have crossed the divide by proving just as successful in the virtual world as in V8 Supercars.

Generally speaking motorsport needs to improve its offering in the new-media landscape, not just the gaming sector. How to make it work and, more importantly, how to make it pay are all valid concerns for many categories. It also opens a can of worms in relation to content rights, which may vary from region to region.

Somehow we have to better embrace this generation and understand how to capture and hold their attention in the fast-paced world in which we all now live.

Please make your kids have a break from technology every once in a while and take them to a real race meeting. Better still, give them the opportunity to get involved. With a bit of luck, it will have the same effect on them as it did on me.

Greg Rust is a freelance sports presenter and commentator with Network Ten.