Ecclestone: Monza must pay to stay on the calendar
The future of the legendary Monza Grand Prix is still uncertain. Bernie Ecclestone is waiting for concrete financial commitments from the organizers to include the event in the 2016 calendar.
Unthinkable just a decade ago, the disappearance of the German Grand Prix from the 2015 Formula 1 calendar sounded like a thunderclap. Next year, a similar upheaval could occur with the disappearance of the Italian Grand Prix.
Like the majority of their European counterparts, the owners of the Monza circuit are struggling to cover their costs. Two years ago, the organizers promised a €20 million investment to renovate aging structures. The promise has not been kept so far. As a result, Bernie Ecclestone, the F1’s chief financial officer, is seriously considering the event’s disappearance starting from 2016.
“It’s a very simple situation,” summarized the FOM president for the Gazzetta dello Sport. “For Monza, we applied the same economic rules as for other European circuits [€20 million for each race, editor’s note]. Why should they be entitled to special treatment? Formula 1 costs money. The negotiation was concluded, we shook hands, but after this meeting, nothing happened.”
If the race organizers (who have changed since the agreement was made) do not release the promised 20 million euros, Monza’s contract should not be extended: « There is a contract for this year, but not for the following years », Ecclestone reminds.
Monza has been on the Formula 1 calendar every year since the championship was created, with the exception of 1980, when the Italian Grand Prix took place at the Imola circuit.
