Motorsport on TV in 2009 – that’s the theme for this last normal week of the year

The BBC’s Formula 1 coverage this year was excellent. It’s easy to say that, and it’s true.

Not everyone was convinced that Jake Humphrey would be a good choice for the main presenter, but, as I suspected, he proved enthusiastic and inquisitive, keen to learn from the experts, asking largely the right questions. Only once or twice did he tread on someone’s toes and get in the way of the story.

Eddie Jordan and Jonathan Legard probably attracted most criticism. I warmed to Jordan’s childish enthusiasm – which plays excellently against David Coulthard – even if he is still a self-important fool. Legard’s biggest crime, like James Allen, is being a bit dull compared to Martin Brundle.

ITV improved the show massively when it got the rights from the BBC, and the BBC has done the same this time. The key, no doubt, has been the Red Button, broadcasting all free practice sessions, 5 Live commentary, an on-board feed, the extended interactive F1 Forum after the races – a quite stunningly comprehensive range of new stuff for us to consume.

What a shame, then, that half or more of it will disappear from Freeview next season. In fact, it happened just before the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, when two-thirds of the BBC’s interactive capacity was sacrificed for future high definition broadcasts. No 5 Live commentary, no F1 Forum, and so on. It’s all offered online, admittedly, but it’s a terrible step backwards for the BBC’s F1 coverage.

I will mainly miss the BBC Radio 5 Live commentary option. David Croft and Anthony Davidson were a fantastic combination, and with Davidson’s options on the 2010 grid dwindling, he might well be back. I know I could just switch the radio on and mute the TV, but with 5 Live and 5 Live Sports Extra both on Freeview already, it would be nice if the technology allowed for the audio to be overlaid on the BBC TV pictures without need for extra capacity. But it seems not.