F1: New Venues Likely to Replace Old Ones

According to Liberty Media CEO, Chase Carey, the current F1 calendar is already full and the proposed new venues which are being decided would replace some which are already on the calendar.

Carey was speaking at the FIA Sport Conference in Manila, Philippines and told reporters that the contracts with some venues may or may not be renewed and it allows them the chance to take F1 to different places. He said, “Ideally we want our relationships to be long-term partnerships. That being said, it’s a reality of life that there are changes.”

“We’ve got a full calendar. Our focus really is quality not quantity. We expect there continue to be a limited level of change per year but that opens up opportunities to bring in some new races that we think would really be exciting new platforms for fans and F1.”

He hinted that the change in venues may not arrive immediately in 2019 but in the years to follow. “For 2019, it is pretty well-baked. As you out to 2020, 2021, there’s certainly discussions we’re having which could lead to new races”, Carey stated.

He also revealed that the interest from potential new venues was widespread and that affirmative decisions on them have not yet been made because of ongoing discussions.

“We have interest from locations in Africa, South America, the US, Europe. While we have a pretty full European slate this year, we have places in Europe that want races. We’ve got places that want to have races that probably wouldn’t work for us.”

“But we’ve got a large number of places that would be interesting and we’re in discussions and we’ll see where those discussions take us”, said Carey.

The likely change that the F1 calendar will see next year is the Miami Grand Prix, which has been proposed by Liberty Media though it is unclear as to which track it may replace or if it is an addition to the calendar.