We had a fairly lively discussion a few weeks back about Bernie Ecclestone’s semi-crazy idea about putting on a New York GP in the outskirts of New York City, somewhere in New Jersey.
We laughed. A few people pointed out that there’s not much there to support a race. A few other people said, well, maybe there actually is.
But it was all fun and idle discussion, right?
Not so fast.
ESPN is reporting Bernie’s idea again today, coupling it with his interest in a new race in Russia and… here’s the kicker, noting that some current tracks will have to get dropped. The Guardian, among others, has picked the story up.
The good news is Valencia and Barcelona are named. The bad news is: Does anyone think Bernie wouldn’t take the opportunity to drop a Spa or Silverstone? (I know, I know, Silverstone has a deal… it’s about worth the paper it’s printed on, I suspect.)
Here are some details.
The sport’s chief executive is pushing for a street race in New Jersey in 2012 and recently revealed he is keen to see one in Russia too. Ecclestone said there are three potential sites for the race outside Manhattan, while Moscow or the resort city Sochi are the possible venues for Russia.
“We’ll make a decision in the next couple of months,” he said referring to the exact locations.
Ecclestone has often talked about expanding the calendar from its current 19 events to 20 or more, but he now says F1 will review its “traditional” European hosts, such as the two races in Spain.
“We’re going to lose some races for sure, there are some races we can afford to lose without too much problem,” he said. “I’ve spoken to the countries to see what we can come up with.”
I feel pretty confident in saying that 99.99% of American race fans would be fine if a GP on U.S. soil replaced Valencia. Anyone have warmer feelings for Barcelona?
Is there a race you’d drop for either Russia or the U.S.?
And how many races do you think the F1 calendar could reasonable hold? Is 20 a good number? Could 21 be as perfect as at the poker table?
