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LONDON (REUTERS) – Formula 1 announced Wednesday that Vietnam was its very last race, while reminding some of the older and more particularly hosts of the British Grand Prix Silverstone that they could not take anything for granted.
"We are a 68-year-old entity and the nature of the grand prix racing is dynamic," said the Formula 1 sales director, Sean Bratches, after the announcement of the announcement of a street competition in Hanoi in April 2020.
"Silverstone was the first Grand Prix, but we have not raced at Silverstone for 68 years, the race was held at Brands Hatch and other places," he said in a statement. question and answer in Formula One.
"Nothing is unchangeable in this sport as far as our race is concerned," he added to the question of whether the grand prizes could be moved from their "traditional homes" to an urban circuit in the city. Other cities of the country.
Silverstone, owned by the British Racing Drivers' Club, is out of contract after next year's race, having exercised a break clause for financial reasons and hoping to negotiate a better deal.
Discussions between the two parties are ongoing.
The circuit attracted sold-out crowds. Some 140,500 spectators clashed that day to compete for a grand prize that will host Lewis Hamilton, five-time world champion, and the majority of the teams.
Bratches said the sport valued and wanted to retain "heritage races" – such as Silverstone, Spa and Monza – and acknowledged their importance to fans.
"But we are a company," he added. "We are a publicly traded company, made up of many shareholders and shareholders, and we try to reconcile what is best for fans to run a successful business." The Formula 1 has 21 races confirmed for 2019, but the German Hockenheim will also be out of contract at the end of next season with the Italian Monza and the Spanish Circuit of Catalunya.
Vietnam is Liberty Media's first race contract ever since the US-based company took over the commercial rights of Formula 1 in January 2017 and overturned the longtime supremo Bernie Ecclestone.
Bratches said Hanoi matched the new vision of the owners of the sport, with another street race in Miami also in the cards.
"One of the things we are intensively focused on is extending Grand Prix racing to iconic cities, in the downtown areas, where we can best engage fans," he said. -he adds.
"Most of our grand prix is currently between half an hour and one hour outside the cities, so this race in Hanoi meets one of our preliminary goals: an iconic city hosting races on a racetrack. potentially exciting street.
"Vietnam's concept of what should be the grand prix races is our vision of the sport."
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