The Grand Prix Drivers' Association (GPDA) has launched the Global Fan Survey to canvas the opinion of fans as it looks for ways to create a better future for Formula One.
The future makeup of the sport is a big topic of debate at the moment following the Strategy Group's radical proposals for upcoming seasons. They included the reintroduction of refuelling in 2017 and faster, louder cars as F1 tries to remedy falling TV audiences and re-engage with a younger audience.
The survey has been launched in partnership with Motorsport.com, and can be found here, includes a full range of topics and has been put together with the help of a world leading research company. Though the findings will not lead to any definite changes it is hoped they will give Bernie Ecclestone and the FIA an idea of the direction fans want the formula to take.
The survey includes a GPDA statement, which says: "As Formula One drivers, we love and admire this sport. We share the feelings of fans who get excited about the purity of man and machine as we compete against the law of physics and, of course, the stopwatch. Without fans, Formula One would be nothing: which is why the Grand Prix Drivers' Association (GPDA) wants to know more about you and what you think about the sport. We believe this Global Fan Survey will give us a unique opportunity to understand how we as drivers, and F1 as a whole, can do more for you."
The survey was launched by F1 chief Bernie Ecclestone, GPDA chairman Alexander Wurz and F1 drivers including association directors Sebastian Vettel and Jenson Button after Thursday practice in Monte Carlo. The GPDA is a union of drivers which has the primary objective of improve and maintain safety standards within the sport, but has now taken an active step into the debate about F1's future.