Formula 1's new owners are pushing on with their research-based approach to fanbase growth and market expansion - and the first results of that research could offer a glimpse at the sport's long-term strategy. F1 is a sport that has been developed largely on instinct; Bernie Ecclestone expanded the calendar and made TV deals based on his years of wheeling and dealing and on hunches about emerging markets. The new owners of F1 have a much more scientific approach and know that, if they are to grow the sport, they need to understand their fans better. Why have lapsed fans drifted off, for example, and can they can be re-engaged? And what are non-fans turned away by? So one of the first hires...
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