I am a little confused. Can someone give me the whole story?

This is what I know:

1. The F16 is a fun boat to sail
2. The sail plan/platform is a good fit for many sailors
3. Under the right hands it is a very fast boat
4. The class has grown, but not at the expense of the professional classes (F18, A nd T) - if anything the class has brought more boats to the line where I live
5. The platform is cost competitve in comparison to performance

This is what I have inferred from the last few years discussion:

1. Macca is a professional sailor (kudos, this is a compliment)
2. He is sponsored by a manufacturer who does not have a platform that matches F16 minimums
3. He is a very accomplished sailor/competitor in various classes
4. He is well repected from a knowledge and experience standpoint

My question is:

Why does he demean the F16 class, its leadership and its rule set? I would think anyone in the boat building/sailing business would applaud and help any initiative that brought more people to the game.

Maybe I am disconnected because I do this for fun and he sees it as a business. Can anyone explain to me the animosity between F16 and Macca (besides personal conflict)?

I could understand his concern about the box rules and the future of the class IF he were actively campaigning F16 with an investment of time and money - but he is not. I can only assume he is working an angle for his employer.

Again, I respect Macca's opinions and his results worldwide (if he is who I think he is), but he seems only concerned with tearing down the F16 class as opposed to growing catamaran sailing in general.

I don't claim to know much (especialy after happy hour), but a lot this type of discussion is a bummer.

I guess I wish I coud sit down with Macca over a beer (or ten) and figure how to promote classes instead of impeding progress (the Lord knows each class has its own problems without outside pressure).