Formula 1 is ready to inaugurate a new era with rotating European Grand Prix, without increasing the number of races annual. As already anticipated in the past months, the president of Formula 1 Stefano domenicali confirmed that it will be announced "very early" the rotation schedule of some Grands Prix in Europe.
With thegrowing global interest and a calendar already at maximum capacity, the rotation of circuits could respond to the growing demand without increasing the load on the teams. “We will soon share some news regarding the possibility, in the medium term, of having some rotating European Grands Prix and other new options in the future. – commented Domenicali – Of course, we will clarify everything in due time.”.
Rotating European Grand Prix: Domenicali's Plan
With 10 races in the old continent currently on the calendar, what could be the potential choices for the rotation project? Some rumors suggest that Barcelona can alternate with Zandvoort, but the organizers of the Dutch GP have rejected this idea. The problem, for many of these circuits, is the contracts currently in force, which do not provide for alternation with other routes.
Silverstone, hungaroring e Red Bull Ring they recently extended their contracts up to 2030 and beyond. Others, like Monaco, Monza, Spa-Francorchamps, Zandvoort and Imola I am in expiry at the end of 2025, but there is little chance that historic tracks like the Principality's will rotate and alternate with others.
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Europe, but not only. "It is true that We have a great demand for potential new locations interested in entering, and our choice will always be balanced between the appropriate economic benefits that we can obtain as a system and the possibility of exploiting the growth of the market, which we see as a potential advantage for our further expansion”. Among the new locations, the name of the has emergedArgentina during the Austin weekend, in addition to the possibility of a Second GP in Saudi Arabia at Qiddiya (where a circuit is being built) and a race in Rwanda.
Il Concorde Agreement, in force until the end of 2025, imposes a maximum limit of 25 seasonal races in the championship. Domenicali is happy to have 24. “We believe that the balance we have in terms of numbers is the right one, so 24 is a balanced number. I think all the proposals that are coming to our table are giving us the opportunity to make even better decisions for our future”.
It is therefore a question of finding the right balance. “We cannot simply opt for the pure direct financial proposal, because this varies from region to region, but it is up to us to propose the right option to our stakeholders”, has explained. “I think we are in a good moment to make sure that the strategy for the future is even stronger, and that is why we are so confident that this will help improve our platform for sports, from a social and commercial perspective”.
