Now, I fancy myself as something of a writer, and I have what I think is a great idea for a story involving Formula One racing. It's pretty well-formed in my mind, so this thread isn't a case of me asking you what you think I should incude if ever I were to get published. Instead, I'm challenging you to come up with an idea for a workable story, one that could put the likes of Tom Cruise, Vin Diesel, Will Ferrell and Sylvester Stallone to shame (granted, it shouldn't be too diffcult). This is my idea so far:
Veteran racing driver Enver Kirilenku (he's Romanian) is in the twilight of his career. After a disappointing season that ends in an early retirement and with his team not willing to renew his contract, Kirilenku decides it's time to leave. He doesn't want to spend two or three years racing around the tail end teaching some upstart young racer how to drive. Shortly after the final race and the announcement of his retirement, his friend and former teammate-turned-driver manager Nathan convinces him not to leave the sport entirely. A small privateer team has folded, and Nathan convinces Enver to return for the next season as a team owner.
On paper, it looks pretty solid, but they're going to need a backer. Under pressure from a major sponsor who doesn't want to wait a year, Nathan and Enver get the support of a shady Mexican businessman and manage to get onto the grid in three short months, having purchased an unused chassis and secured an engine deal. For drivers they sign Dominic Phillips, a promising British driver who has just finished his first season in the sport, and Sophie Chevalier, a GP2 driver and the first female in the sport; both Nathan and Enver feel guilty that they hired her based on the fact that she could draw more sponsors rather than on her talent.
No-one expects too much to begin with, especially given the circumstances, and the best that can be said of the team is that they consistently meet expectations. They pick up a few points when results go their way, but over the course of the season, weird things start to happen. At first Enver suspects their Mexican partner, who has always provided his money when asked, but has never described where it comes from. In reality, he's actually their heir to a fortune based on manufacturing laxatives and condoms, and naturally wants to keep it quiet. The real threat to the team is Phillips, where it is revealed that he borrowed the mney to begin his career from some rather shady characters and hasn't payed them back. In fact, he's borrowed more money and injected it into the team.
Elsewhere, a major scandal breaks out among the top teams that demands considerable attention, and the paddock give it to them, unaware of Enver's problems. A lack of development on the car means everyone else is getting faster while the mob closes in on the team, and everything comes to a head at the season finale.
As you have probably guessed, I've drawn on a bit of reject lore to ake this work, namely the following:
- MasterCard pushing Lola onto the 1997 grid
- Tom Walkinshaw's mismanagement of Arrows in 2002, including his hiring of a less-than-trustworthy sponsor
- Honda's withdrawal in 2008 and the rise of Brawn in 2009
- The McLaren-Ferrari espionage scandal of 2007 OR the safety car fiasco at Melbourne in 2009
- Andrea Moda, circa 1992 (possibly a rival new team)
- Alain Prost learning the difference between driver and owner the hard way
And so on and so forth.