Formula 1 Plans Up To 19 Ghost Races

Sports director Ross Brawn plans to start the Formula 1 season in July – in Spielberg or Silverstone. In this case, he even expects 19 possible races. The Briton explains on Sky Sports F1 how to do it: “Three races, then a weekend break, three races, a weekend break.”

And further: “We could have a closed environment.” Means: The teams are smuggled from the airport to the track and regularly tested for the coronavirus. Spectators would not be allowed. “It’s not great, but it’s still better than no race at all,” said Brawn.

Alone: ​​is this really a realistic variant? 19 races in 27 weeks – or less?

The fact is: Formula 1 must radiate optimism. If there are fewer than 15 races, the TV stations can reduce their fees. And at least eight races on three continents are necessary for a world championship. Brawn also knows this and calculates: “We could still have eight races if we started in October.”

However, a realistic outlook is not possible before the end of May. Travel restrictions also apply to Formula 1 and due to high travel costs, the races will only pay off for the teams if the routes continue to pay entry fees. But this is anything but likely in ghost races, especially in Europe.

Formula 1 should now remain realistic. A race marathon without spectators makes no sense for fans or for the teams. After all: An extension of the World Cup into January is currently not up for debate.

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