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F1 German GP Loss is Frustrating: Bratches

Published 07/03/2018, 12:53 PM EDT

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F1 commercial boss Sean Bratches was gutted at the loss of the German Grand Prix for 2019. This came to pass because the event’s promoters failed to reach an agreement with Liberty Media.

The dealings were set in stone earlier this week when Hockenheim boss Georg Seiler alluded to the botched negotiations. Bratches even confirmed the bad news for Formula One.

“Unfortunately, we could not agree with any race track in Germany,” he said in Austria.

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“It’s frustrating that we could not reach a solution for a country with such a huge racing tradition, with the reigning constructor world champion and with a four-time champion, and that apparently nobody was willing to support the race tracks and take away the financial risk,” Bratches added.

via Imago

The Formula One Group executive insisted that the exit was not due to lack of interest from German fans.

“The interest in Germany is great,” said the American.

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“We know that from our own sources and you can see it in the ratings as well. For the next few years, of course we will keep working on a solution,” he said.

Present in Austria this weekend, former F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone also regretted Germany’s inability to remain on the docket.

“The conditions are not easy for the circuits in Germany,” Mr. Ecclestone said. “It was the same in my time. But we still found a solution.”

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The big question is, will the German GP ever return to the F1 calendar? Last month, 2016 F1 champion Nico Rosberg said that it was imperative that the German GP remain on the calendar.

“Without a German race I struggle to see it as a real world championship,” said Rosberg. “Germany is so legendary, so important for Formula One it really has to be there so I hope they find a solution,”

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Written by:

Dhruv George

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Dhruv George is a senior Formula One and NASCAR analyst for EssentiallySports, having authored nearly 12000 articles spanning different sports like F1, NASCAR, Tennis, NFL, and eSports. He graduated with a PG Diploma in Journalism from the Xavier Institute of Communications. Dhruv has also conducted interviews with F1 driver Pierre Gasly and Moto2 rider Tony Arbolino.
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