Eighth appointment in 1977 for the Formula 1 circus. Location: Anderstorp, a small village in southern Sweden amidst the forest. It was its mayor, a certain Smokey, who thought of organizing car and motorcycle races a few years ago, taking advantage of the track of a semi-abandoned airport. The result was a flat circuit, 4018 meters long, with short straights and some curves, but speeds were never exceptional (record: Depailler in a Tyrrell, 1974, in 1'27"262, equivalent to 165.785 km/h). As is known, Jody Scheckter currently leads the World Championship standings with 32 points, driving for Wolf, followed by Niki Lauda (31) and Carlos Reutemann (23) in Ferraris, and Mario Andretti (22) with Lotus. The battle for the title seems to be primarily between these four drivers, given the point difference with the fifth in the standings, Swede Nilsson (13 points), Andretti's teammate. In sixth place is the reigning World Champion Hunt (9 points). Despite possible surprises, which are never lacking in motorsport, the most favored car and driver at the moment seem to be the Lotus and Andretti. The English team, led by Colin Chapman, has once again managed to create a fabulous vehicle that is decidedly superior to its competitors. This was demonstrated at the Belgian Grand Prix where, with Andretti out of the race due to an accident, Nilsson had no difficulty flying with his Lotus ahead of Lauda. This was thanks to the car. Therefore, Lotus is also favored in Sweden. It might be challenged by the six-wheeled Tyrrells, which have always performed well at Anderstorp, including Scheckter's victories in 1974 and 1976. This Sunday, one of the six-wheelers will be driven by the Swede Peterson, bold and unlucky but certainly still competitive: nothing would please him more than a victory in front of his home crowd. Of course, Ferrari (Lauda's victory in 1975) should also be considered, although the Anderstorp circuit doesn't seem particularly suitable for them. There is a risk that this year the already known tire and setup problems will be even more pronounced in Sweden. Finally, Vittorio Brambilla should not be forgotten, who once started in pole position here. For some of those imponderable reasons of motorsport, the skillful Brambilla always does superb things on the Swedish circuit. If the weather remains good (it's very hot and the sky is clear), at least a hundred thousand fans are expected to attend Anderstorp. This makes the Formula 1 Swedish Grand Prix the most important sporting event in Northern Europe. There will be no television broadcasts.
On Friday, June 17, 1977, somewhat surprisingly, John Watson manages to set the fastest time in the first day of practice for the Swedish Grand Prix, the eighth race of the World Championship. Following him are Jody Scheckter in a Wolf and Mario Andretti in a Lotus: three drivers, three cars that have set the pace dominating times and standings from the beginning to the end of the torrid day. Torrid due to the stifling heat, 30°C, with zero humidity and the sun beating down on a circuit without the slightest comfort of water and greenery. Overall, this results in general nervousness and irritations involving almost everyone, possibly influencing the results. Ferrari is somewhat struggling in this first day of practice. In the morning, it seems to be solely a matter of tires, but in the afternoon, with new tires, the Maranello cars fail to be competitive, confirming that something else is not right. It starts at 10:00 a.m. with the immediate dominance of the Lotuses. Andretti sets one fast lap after another, going below 1'26"0. The Swede Nilsson doesn't want to be outdone by his teammate, managing to achieve a time of 1'26"604. An outstanding performance, securing him a good fifth place. Suddenly, James Hunt reappears with his McLaren, while Jody Scheckter, in his Wolf, confirms the excellent competitiveness that has distinguished him throughout the season. Lauda and Reutemann can't go fast, and especially the Argentine makes continuous visits to the pit where suspensions and wings are subject to continuous attention and changes. There seems to be considerable nervousness at Ferrari, as Forghieri insists with Reutemann, saying that everything must go very well. Lauda, on the other hand, is calmer, perhaps convinced that the expected new tires will completely change the situation. There is only one incident throughout the day. Fittipaldi's Copersucar reports a break in the hub of the left rear wheel. The tire flies in the air, passes in front of the driver's face, and ends up against the safety fence. The Brazilian ends up with the car against the same fence: a demolished car and an unharmed driver. The tests are suspended for about twenty minutes to allow the wreckage to be recovered. At the end of the morning tests, Andretti is in the lead, followed by Hunt, Scheckter, Laffite, and Nilsson. Lauda is tenth, Reutemann eleventh, Brambilla fifteenth. Ferrari has a long closed-door session, then an official press conference with Engineer Nosetto, the team's manager, who says:
"At the end of the Belgian Grand Prix, Engineer Ferrari asked Goodyear to apply one of the paragraphs of the contract, which provided for our possibility to demand tests of new types of tires and to choose the best ones, while Goodyear retained the possibility to offer the same tires to other teams. In the spirit of collaboration between our two houses, Goodyear accepted our proposal and manufactured new tires that we will try as soon as they arrive. These are tires that theoretically should perform better, and their compound is similar to that used a year ago when everything was going very well for us. Of course, we have no illusions. We only say that we are waiting for the new tires, hope they perform well, and are willing to start all over again".
There is great anticipation in the afternoon for the debut of the new tires, and great disappointment since absolutely nothing changes, except that Reutemann is faster than Lauda. What does change, however, in the hour of testing in the stifling heat, are the performances of the other drivers. Watson, with his Martini-Brabham-Alfa Romeo, easily surpasses all the times of his rivals, saying at the end of the tests:
"The car is going very well, and my task was really easy".
Scheckter, Andretti, and Hunt follow him in the times. The Swedish Grand Prix appears with a well-defined physiognomy: Brabham, Wolf, and Lotus dominate, McLaren of Hunt is back in the picture, while Ferraris are quite far behind. Lauda even says that with the new tires, his car performs worse than before and that - unless sensational events occur - he can say goodbye to any chance of victory or even a good placement in this tormented Swedish circuit that really doesn't seem to suit Ferraris. Ahead of Lauda are drivers like Stuck, Brambilla, Jones, and Regazzoni. Skilled individuals but certainly inferior to the Austrian. The next day, Saturday, June 18, 1977, Mario Andretti easily secures pole position in the Swedish Grand Prix. The Italo-American driver, it must be said immediately, doesn't even need to exert much effort to set the best time of the day. His Lotus gives the impression of being able to do even more, and the young Nilsson, the teammate of the Italo-American, confirms with a good seventh time the superiority of the English team. Also notable are the Martini-Brabham-Alfa Romeos, which will start in second and fifth positions with Watson and Stuck. The reigning World Champion, James Hunt, with McLaren, with the third best overall time, seems to be on the right track, but McLarens have always performed well in Sweden. To find Ferrari, you have to go down to the twelfth position. Carlos Reutemann precedes Niki Lauda, as his car performs better than the Austrian's. Ferrari is really in trouble, and this time, tires are not the cause. On the contrary, the battle with Goodyear seems lost, as the Maranello team got the tires it wanted but nothing has improved.
What's wrong is the 312-T2, and a series of interesting observations by Engineer Roberto Nosetto confirms this. The sports director of the Maranello team takes times at the south curve, where phenomena related to a strong braking not followed by strong acceleration are highlighted. Against 8.21s, Andretti's best time, there is an 8.44s from Lauda: 0.23s, in short, separate the two in one of the eight curves of the circuit. With eight curves, this results in a gap of 1.06s per lap. In practice, an abyss. In an attempt to achieve better times, Lauda even drives with the reserve car, but with no positive results. Ferrari really tries everything. Tires are changed, the position of the wings is modified, and adjustments are made to the shock absorbers. In practice, nothing changes. The cars continue to experience understeer on entry and oversteer on exit. However, Reutemann is doing better than on Friday. By constantly trying to act on the front of the car, he has achieved some improvements. Nosetto says he doesn't know why there are these improvements. Mechanics act on the front suspension, aerodynamic loads, and everything that is variable on the front of the car. And little by little, they finally manage to make the 312-T2 work better. The second day of testing starts with a dark sky and the threat of rain. During the night, a light storm had cooled the temperature, although it remains very hot. One minute before 10:00 a.m., the scheduled start time for the tests, it starts raining heavily. Drivers make a few laps, then, seeing that the times are twice as high as those of Friday, they return to the pits. In practice, nothing is done because at 11:30 a.m., when the end of the tests is scheduled, it is still raining. Everything is postponed to the afternoon.
At 1:00 p.m., the sun reappears, very strong, and the track dries in a few minutes. Andretti immediately sets an excellent time and has no difficulty improving it after about ten minutes. Then, since no rival threatens him and following the advice from the pit, he slows down. After him, the best times of today's tests are those of Hunt, Scheckter, Stuck, and Watson. Even Regazzoni precedes Lauda and Brambilla and is faster than Reutemann. The Martini-Brabham-Alfa Romeo doesn't need to test the new tires, and its results confirm absolute regularity. Engineer Chiti says that finally, the cars are starting to work perfectly, and he is confident in a series of upcoming successes, especially since the slow circuits are over. Except for the Martini-Brabham-Alfa Romeo, all teams test the tires with the new compound that arrived overnight, but generally, they revert to the traditional ones. The tire replacement continues without interruptions, and nothing new or positive ever happens. On Sunday, June 19, 1977, proves to be another warm, dry, affair, meaning the only concerns for the drivers are with overheating tyres, particularly as Goodyear has bring a softer compound for the race. Warm-up pass without issue, although there is a surprise in store when Jacques Laffite topped the timesheet, the Frenchman lapping significantly faster than pole sitter Mario Andretti. Regardless, it will be Andretti who leads the field slowly around from the dummy grid to the proper grid for the start, with 24 engines roaring in anticipation of the starter's lights. Ultimately, it’s John Watson who makes the best escape from the grid as the lights change, the Brit blasting ahead of Andretti to sweep into the lead before the first corner. Jody Scheckter follows him through, sprinting away from James Hunt before slithering around Andretti around the outside of turn one, with the Brit getting catch behind the American. That battle allows Hans-Joachim Stuck to briefly get ahead of the #1 McLaren, although Hunt quickly got back ahead into turn two. It will takes Andretti less than half a lap to exact his revenge on Scheckter, the American dancing his Lotus past the Wolf as they blast past the pits. The American quickly manages to close in on Watson down the straight, and pulls alongside the Brabham-Alfa Romeo across the finish line. Scheckter follows them through ahead of Hunt and Stuck, with Patrick Depailler and home hero Gunnar Nilsson leading the rest at the end of the opening tour. It’s a case of déjà vu on the second tour for Andretti, as the American send his Lotus scything past Watson at Gislaved to snatch the lead, a repeat of his move on Scheckter.
This is quickly translate into a small lead over the Brit, denying Watson the chance to respond at the end of the back straight, with both a small way ahead of Scheckter. It isn’t all smiles for Lotus, however, as Nilsson seems to be struggling with an issue in his car, and so is powerless to deny a move from Jochen Mass at the end of the very same straight. The following laps will see Andretti disappear at the front of the field, leaving Watson to lead a five car scrap for second. The American racer's teammate Nilsson will not be among them, with the Swede tumbling down the order with a handling issue. He ultimately brings the #6 Lotus in at the end of lap six with a loose wheel and broken nose, the latter wind the result of getting rear-ended by Jacques Laffite, who hit the Swede with enough force to launch the Lotus into the air, albeit briefly. Ronnie Peterson is another early pit caller, although his ignition issue on lap seven ultimately proves terminal to his pursuit of a home win. On track, meanwhile, the Swede's teammate Depailler will be busy in the Watson train, taking fifth away from Stuck as Mass drew onto his tail. The #2 McLaren duly follows the Tyrrell through, leaving Stuck's seemingly trouble Brabham to tumble into the sights of Carlos Reutemann. Indeed, by this stage the Watson train is beginning to break up, with the Ulsterman, and Scheckter, pulling clear of Hunt, Depailler and Mass. Andretti continues to dominate out front, just under five seconds clear with ten laps gone, while Stuck's race seems to be coming to an end as he tumbles down the order. He soon falls to both Reutemann and Laffite, with Niki Lauda the next man to line up a move on the German driver. However, Lauda never got the chance to pounce on the struggling Stuck, for the Austrian pitches himself into a spin at Gislaved, all on his own. Jean-Pierre Jarier, Jackie Oliver and Clay Regazzoni all slip past before Lauda recover, with the Austrian lacking the confidence in his car to chase them down. Teammate Reutemann, meanwhile, is having a more successful time further up the order, although the #12 Ferrari is coming under fire from a now charging Laffite in the Ligier-Matra. Indeed, Laffite becomes the center of attention as the race wear on, the Frenchman weaving his way past Reutemann before launching a series of attacks on Mass ahead. His efforts will, however, be overshadow by a rather clumsy incident up the road, as Scheckter tries an ambitious, and late, dive on Watson in Gislave on lap thirty.
The Ulsterman, unaware that the Wolf is trying to pounce down the inside of the left hander, pulling right across the path of Scheckter. Watson is sending into a spin, stopping in the middle of the track as the Hunt peloton hundred into view. They flood either side of the stranded Brabham, although Watson is able to recover and loop back into the pits for checks just after they go past. Scheckter, meanwhile, is left with ruin front right suspension, meaning the Wolf is out on the spot. Watson will rejoin from his stop down in seventh, just ahead of teammate Stuck, although the German's ruins front tyres are about to see him swallow up by Regazzoni. Up ahead, meanwhile, Laffite is the Watson and Scheckter accident as a means to make it onto the podium, and duly redouble his efforts to take Mass. The #2 McLaren is able to resist for a time, however, with Hunt likewise fending off Depailler for second just ahead. Ultimately, there will be no stopping Laffite in his pursuit of a podium finish, with the Ligier scything past Mass' McLaren into Gislaved on lap 38. This is follow by an identical move on Depailler a lap later, before the Ligier settles its sights on the gearbox of Hunt. The Brit is fame for his defensive and offensive driving, but with half of the race gone his tyres are well past their best. Indeed, it takes Laffite just two laps to smuggle his Ligier into second, the Frenchman once again deploying his favore dive into Gislaved to get the job done. Hunt is powerless to prevent the Ligier escaping, and duly gather himself together to prepare to resist Depailler once again. Indeed, the Frenchman is soon back in the McLaren's mirrors, although Depailler has his own troubles lurking in the form of Mass and Reutemann. It’s a ferocious fight for third that emerge over the following laps, with Mass and Reutemann elbowing their way past Depailler after the Frenchman fails with a move on Hunt. After a couple of laps, Hunt decides to wave his teammate through at the end of the straight, only to have Reutemann scythe past as well on the brakes into the penultimate corner. Frustrate, Hunt tries his best to get back at the Ferrari but simply lack the grip, meaning he, once again, has to prepare to resist the impending attentions of Depailler. His efforts fails however, and Hunt is once again dump down two positions in the space of a single corner, as the Frenchman elbows his way through with enough force to allow Watson to slip past the McLaren on the exit of Gislaved. Hunt's race ultimately came to its effective end on lap 52, with the Brit stopping for fresh tyres having seen Regazzoni in the Ensign appear in his mirrors.
It’s small consolation that his dishearten rival Lauda is out, the Austrian deciding on his third and final stop that his handling issues are incurable. Vittorio Brambilla is soon to join the Austrian on the sidelines with his recurring fuel issue, while Ian Scheckter is force to stop his factory March after a suspension joint fails. On track, meanwhile, Laffite is chipping away into Andretti's lead, although the American is cruising around in the Lotus and seems to have enough pace to fend him off. Yet, with fifteen laps to go all isn’t well in the #5 car, for the fuel light in the American's cockpit has come on a lot earlier than expected. Noticing this, Andretti begins to coast around more than he has before, allowing Laffite to take more and more time out of the American's fifteen second lead. With five laps to go Laffite is just five seconds away from the Lotus, with Andretti staring at his fuel gauge as much as he is looking at the circuit. As their fight brew, the second Lotus of Nilsson is pulls out of the race with a broken wheel, while Stuck is carving his way back up the order on his fresh tyres. Hunt and Brett Lunger will be powerless to resist the charging Brabham while, just ahead, Regazzoni and the veteran Oliver engage in a ferocious duel at the lower end of the top ten. Back with Andretti and the American is in serious trouble with three laps to go, a cough from his Cosworth at the end of the back straight signaling that the Lotus is running on fumes. That, ultimately, proves to be the case, for Andretti comes barrelling into the pits on the 70th lap for a quick top up, before charging back onto the circuit having receive 5 liters of fuel. Yet, no matter how quickly the Lotus crew has work, Andretti is to rejoin down in sixth, as Laffite is suddenly told that he is leading. With that the race is run, with Laffite sweeping home to claim a maiden victory, although the Frenchman is reluctant to believe he has done so with the little Ligier. Mass is next ahead of Reutemann, while Depailler manages to fend off Watson for fourth, with the Brabham still carrying its wounds from the Scheckter incident. Andretti did not win. This can perhaps be defined, in concise terms and certainly based on the feeling, as the result of the Swedish Grand Prix. The Italian-American did not finish first only because he lacked the few drops of fuel that would have allowed him to complete the last eight kilometers. He had dominated the race from the start and deserved the victory abundantly. However, the fuel regulator on his car had stuck at the maximum richness level, and Andretti, when he felt he was running out of fuel, kept a light foot (as he said in the end), but it wasn't enough.
He had a comfortable 16-second lead over Laffite: the unavoidable pit stop pushed him back to sixth place. His anger, his frustration, his discouragement are more than understandable tonight, and indeed, he is the moral winner. All this, of course, does not diminish the merit of the actual winner, Laffite, the driver of Ligier, who had a truly perfect race, gaining position after position in a crescendo that saw him move from tenth to second place. It must be said that Anderstop really suits the French driver, who has always performed well here. After him, we find Mass, who finished where his teammate Hunt should logically finish. Hunt showed good form and determination. Only the mechanical failure in the second part of the race prevented the Englishman from securing a top position. The breakdown occurred when Hunt suddenly dropped from second to seventh place in a matter of minutes. A real shame, as he was really fast and even gaining a few seconds on Andretti. Reutemann's third place, the positive note for Ferrari. Starting in twelfth position, the Argentine recovered, overtaking one competitor after another, moving up to seventh place. He settled there for a good part of the race, but the retirements of the competitors ahead eventually brought him to fourth place. Just when both he and Ferrari seemed more than satisfied with such a result, the inconvenience happened to Andretti, and Reutemann advanced one more position. Overall, it is a more than noteworthy result for the Maranello team, considering the issues affecting the cars. Reutemann finished the race exhausted, with his arms broken from the immense effort of keeping a car on track that wanted to go on its own at every turn. Oversteer, understeer, setup. It just doesn't work. Lauda, who started in fifteenth position and moved up to twelfth, couldn't advance further. At mid-race, he returned to the pits to change the front tires, and after two laps, he returned again. No, the car didn't want to go in the right direction.
There was another attempt to change the wing, and then the Austrian gave up. At Ferrari, the irritation over the retirement is evident, and the Goodyear technicians are also irritated, exchanging some strong words with journalists who want to know too much. Obviously, calm and patience are needed: the work to be done is long and requires understanding and sacrifice. Precisely for this reason, Reutemann's third place seems more than positive and perhaps even encouraging. Brambilla, who had trouble with the fuel pump at the start, had to retire. He did a couple of laps, then, taking a corner a bit too wide, ended up in the grass, and the grass blocked the radiator. He returned to the pits, cleaned up, and restarted well. At mid-race, the fuel pump reported other irregularities, and good old Vittorio had to retire. Among the dramatic retirements, there was also Scheckter, who in an attempt to overtake Watson bumped into him, damaging the left rear wheel rim and ruining the suspension of his car. The race started at 1:28 p.m. with overcast skies and sultry weather. It seemed like rain could come at any moment, but it didn't. On the contrary, right after the start, the sky cleared, and the sun started to beat hard: 30 °C in the shade put men and machines to the test. Andretti and Watson started strong, and the Irishman took the lead for about half a lap. The long-awaited victory of Jacques Laffite creates an explosion of happiness in the French camp, and more than one member of the Ligier-Matra team can hardly hold back tears of joy at the end of the race. It was since Jean-Pierre Beltoise's success in Monaco in 1972 that a French driver had not won a Grand Prix, so the euphoria at the end of the race is understandable. Today's victory also provides a breather for the French team. Just before this race, Ligier had received an ultimatum from its sponsors (Gitanes and Norev): either they achieved a victory in one of the next five Grand Prix races, or the financial support would be withdrawn. Laffite says at the end of the race:
"I couldn't believe it when passing in front of the pits they signaled to me that I was first. I thought they were mistaken, but the next lap I saw them waving their arms, and then I was convinced I was in the lead. I am naturally happy for this victory, which repays all of us for two years of hard work and various disappointments. I am so tired that I cannot fully enjoy the victory. I will be happier tomorrow after I have slept tonight".
Laffite's joy contrasts with Mario Andretti's sadness, who once again is left with a bitter taste after dominating the practices and the race.
"Everything went wrong for me; I ran out of fuel three laps from the end and had to enter the pits for a quick refueling. The cause of everything was the fuel distributor mixer, which inexplicably shifted and supplied the engine with a richer mixture. It happened on the tenth lap, and I noticed it because the car bogged down and struggled to recover coming out of the corners. So I tried to drive cautiously, not pushing too hard, to limit fuel consumption. I hoped to make it. I had started with enough fuel to cover three laps more than expected, but obviously, it wasn't enough".
In this race full of twists, Carlos Reutemann, certainly more due to his merit than the car's, secured a valuable third place.
"My arms are broken because keeping the car on this track has been a feat. After the first laps, the car began to show significant understeer, and it was impossible to set up the turns. To get to the end, I had to really struggle".
Reutemann's placement restores confidence to the men of the Maranello team, who, while not hiding the difficulties they are facing, are already looking ahead to the work they will have to do in the coming days to solve the problems afflicting the red single-seaters. Engineer Roberto Nosetto says:
"We hoped for the reliability of our cars, and indeed this reliability has emerged once again. We can be satisfied because the two drivers ahead of us are not top-notch. On our part, we will work a lot, and only after Dijon, where we will go to test on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, will we know our real possibilities. Currently, we are concerned because there is something wrong with the front of the car, something we haven't been able to find".
Another day of bitterness for the men of the Martini-Brabham-Alfa Romeo team, who rightly aspired to something more. John Watson says, visibly angry:
"I find them all: first Andretti in Zolder and here Scheckter, who tried an impossible overtaking, bumping into me and ruining the race for both of us".
And Carlo Chiti, the engineer, adds:
"We have been unlucky again, eliminated by another trivial accident. However, our cars have confirmed what they had shown the day before, that is, being among the most competitive single-seaters, and so we hope that the next time will be the good one".
Vittorio Brambilla was also unlucky, having trouble right at the start.
"At the start, the fuel pump started working irregularly, and the engine stalled. Then, in a braking maneuver with Oliver, I went into the grass, and the grass closed the water radiator air intakes, causing it to boil. After the pit stop to clear these air intakes, I had recovered well, but towards the end, the fuel pump broke, and I had to retire".
It must be acknowledged that in this negative moment, so full of controversies and uncertainties, Ferrari is aided by luck. Luck in the sense that opponents, due to an incredible series of circumstances, fail to take advantage of the current weakness of the Maranello cars.
So Carlos Reutemann and Niki Lauda, in turn, keep pace, and above all, they are not detached in the World Championship standings from Jody Scheckter and Mario Andretti. In Belgium, Andretti had bumped into the poor John Watson and retired together with the Martini-Brabham-Alfa Romeo driver, while Scheckter, after a series of mistakes, had also been forced to retire. Gunnar Nilsson had won, who had only a few points in the standings, and Lauda managed to secure second place. In Sweden, there was another collision for Watson, this time due to Scheckter, while Andretti finished sixth due to a fault in the fuel system. For the struggling Lauda, here comes Reutemann third, with Jacques Laffite's victory, for whom the reasoning made for Nilsson applies. Ferrari and its drivers, therefore, graciously receive indirect support from Lotus and Wolf, while Brabham, with the 12-cylinder engine of Alfa Romeo, continues with monotonous regularity not to keep the promises of the eve. And in these last two races, for reasons that go beyond the competitiveness of the car. Perhaps, Watson should ask for a special blessing: two collisions in two consecutive races constitute a bitter record. In sports, gifts of this kind usually come at a cost. But it becomes essential, all the more so, for the men of the Maranello team to take advantage of the break, the breathing space inadvertently granted by those who can field more competitive cars. Not every race can end as positively as the Belgian and Swedish ones. Unfortunately, it seems that the situation is not improving, at least for now. The Anderstorp circuit, even in the past, in the best moments of the 312-T2, has been challenging for the Maranello team. This time, the Swedish track clearly highlighted the shortcomings of the cars: a test that is too negative, but reality is certainly not cheerful. Now Scheckter continues to be the leader of the World Championship with 32 points, against Lauda's 31. Reutemann has taken a good step forward, rising to 27 points, while Andretti follows with 23 points. In Dijon, we will see if Ferrari, with new tires or old tires, Goodyear or not Goodyear, will be able to improve a situation that disappoints its fans and leads its critics to heavy irony and fierce appreciations. But this is the fate of those who win too much.