10/05/2019
NEWS STORY
As it stands, Following the news that Monza has agreed a deal to keep the Italian Grand Prix, seemingly at a nice price, there remain four other events in the final year of their contracts, Britain, Spain, Germany and Mexico.
Speaking in a conference call with business analysts, Chase Carey has admitted that while two current races are to be dropped, the 2020 calendar will remain at 21 events.
With Vietnam joining the schedule and widespread speculation the Zandvoort is to replace Barcelona, this leaves Britain, German and Mexico in the 'drop zone'. However, with Mexico, like Spain, having lost its government funding, it is likely that this event will be dropped.
"We're in the process of finalising our 2020 race calendar," said Carey. "We have agreements in principle on two renewals, and are actively engaged on three other renewals. In addition we have already announced our race in Hanoi, and construction has begun on the track and facilities.
"It will be a street course that is one of the most unique and challenging race tracks in the world," he continued, "with 22 corners and a couple of long straightaways, the design of which we have been intimately involved with. I was in Hanoi a few weeks ago, and the excitement was palpable.
"In addition to Hanoi, we also have an agreement in principle to add another new circuit to our calendar in 2020," he added, a reference no doubt to Zandvoort. "We've not finalised the number of races in 2020, but we currently expect it to be 21, the same as 2019. Obviously the math means that we will not be able to renew all our current races."
While the excitement in Hanoi might be "palpable", other than those broadcasters who appear to be enthralled by Mr Carey, the prospect of a race in Vietnam isn't exactly firing the imagination of most fans or drivers, a situation that will hardly be helped were the race to replace one of the sport's 'classic' tracks.
However, Carey, who has made no secret of his plan to take the sport into "destination cities", insists that change is necessary.
"We value our partnerships with our existing promoters, however we believe it is important for our fans and the growth of our sport and business that we both add exciting new locations, and manage a limited level of churn.
"We're in the fortunate position of having more demand than supply," he continued, "but recognise that we need to manage that dynamic in a thoughtful manner.
"The factors we consider in deciding on a race include the quality of the track for great racing, and the location as one that captures the world's imagination, the level of fan and broader support and enthusiasm in the host city and country, the historic importance and future potential of the track and race, the global balance of our schedule; and a number of other factors.
"We clearly have demand for more than 21 races in 2020, and do expect that number of races in a year will increase slightly after 2020," he admitted. "However we want to make sure that we're maximising the opportunities for the sport and fans, and not rush to decisions.
"We believe that a limited expansion of the calendar, and churn, are important for creating a fresh and exciting dynamic for fans and for our ongoing growth."