British GP axed

[Salem6]

The British Grand Prix has been omitted from the Formula One calendar for the first time in the sport's history.



Silverstone is not on the provisional 2005 calendar, which must be ratified by the FIA world council on 13 October.

Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone reportedly wanted £8.9m from race organisers the British Racing Drivers' Club to host the race.

BRDC president Sir Jackie Stewart described the decision as "a disaster" and called on Ecclestone to rethink.

The BRDC had until Thursday to submit an offer to promote the 2005 Grand Prix but it was rejected, with Ecclestone scathing of the way Silverstone is run.

"We're dealing with a gentlemen's club which is a bit short of gentlemen," he told ITV News.

If the decision stands it will be the first time Britain is missing from the Formula One calendar since the world championship began, at Silverstone, in 1950.

Stewart told BBC Radio Five Live: "Even at this late stage we would ask Mr Ecclestone and the British Government to think again and see if we can retain the Grand Prix for the sake of the industry, sport and the country.

"We've gone as far as we can in making cutbacks in other areas to be able to afford the Grand Prix because we feel it is very important for the country as a whole.

"The gap between money being asked for (by Formula One) and what we can offer is comparatively small - in single figures of millions - but the amount is unaffordable.

"The British Racing Drivers Club cannot afford the British Grand Prix at any price."

Stewart was also critical of the Government for failing to offer sufficient financial help to Silverstone.

"We've been in contact with the Government for nearly four years," said Stewart.

"Unlike in other countries where Grands Prix are hosted - these governments have assisted in hosting and promoting the Grands Prix - our Government has made a decision it does not wish to do that."

But the Government responded immediately, defending its record of investment in and around Silverstone.

A spokesman for the Department of Culture, Media and Sport said: "Clearly the Government supports and wants to see a British Grand Prix at Silverstone.

"But the current commercial negotiations about the promotion of the Grand Prix are a matter between the BRDC and Formula One.

"We have done everything, and will continue to, to help bring the parties together to discuss the matter.

"The Government has already made significant financial contribution to motorsport and Silverstone - in 2002 we invested over £16m to support the industry and £8m to improve road access around the track."

Alex Hooton, chief executive of the BRDC, said: "I seriously think that it is possible there will be no Grand Prix in Great Britain next year.

"Negotiations will continue but as things currently stand, the outlook is bleak."

The chief executive of South Northamptonshire Council, Rob Tinlin, said: "It is a huge disappointment for the area and it is a huge blow for the BRDC who have worked very hard to improve the circuit and keep the Grand Prix.

"It will have a big impact for the local economy as the race brings in £30m to the area each year."


Audio:-

Interview: BRDC president Jackie Stewart
news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/formula_one/3703350.stm#


news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/formula_one/3703350.stm

[Salem6]

By Andrew Fraser
BBC Sport



It seems hard to believe, but the 2005 Formula One season may well go ahead without a British Grand Prix.

The race has been left out of F1's provisional schedule for next season by the sport's supremo Bernie Ecclestone.

That decision still has to be ratified by international motorsport's governing body the FIA at a council meeting on 13 October.

But if it is, the closest the historic Northamptonshire circuit will get to F1 action next year is the occasional testing session.

It would end, at least for the time being, a long and proud tradition of Grand Prix racing in Britain.

But there is no place for sentimentality in F1.

Ecclestone has already demonstrated his ruthless streak by axeing the 2003 Belgian Grand Prix in a row over tobacco advertising.

Austria lost its slot this season for similar reasons, and Canada only survived because it came up with a package to compensate sponsors for its tobacco ban.

Silverstone's fate has also come down to money, with Ecclestone at loggerheads with the British Racing Drivers' Club over how much it should pay to be allowed to stage the race.

The BRDC, which owns the circuit, has told Ecclestone it cannot promote the British GP on his terms without making a loss as the only revenue it can take from the race is the gate receipts.

Appeals to the Government for financial help to make up the reported £3m a race shortfall have so far been in vain.

Countries such as India and Turkey, bolstered by government funding, are queueing up to join newcomers China and Bahrain at the F1 party.

And, with ruling body the FIA looking to trim the calendar back down to 17 races to help teams cope with the cost of competing, Silverstone was skating on thin ice.

The circuit and its owners have been regular targets of criticism by Ecclestone in recent years.

Significant steps have been taken to improve the facilities and solve the traffic problems that have plagued the event.

And this year's race was a sell-out, with 195,000 fans watching the action over the three days.

But it won't just be legions of British petrolheads who are disappointed.

Axeing Silverstone will also be an unpopular move with the drivers, who regard it as a real racer's circuit.

But the same was the case with Belgium's Spa-Francorchamps, and that did not stop it spending a year in the wilderness.

The fear for Silverstone is that its disappearance from the Grand Prix scene could be a lot less fleeting.

The idea of a race through the streets of London received an enthusiastic welcome at a demonstration in July.

About 500,000 fans turned up to see Grand Prix cars cruising down a course between Regent Street and Piccadilly Circus.

And, despite the obvious problems with staging a Monaco-style race in the English capital, London Mayor Ken Livingstone has insisted it is a real possibility.

The BRDC has admitted its offer to Ecclestone falls short of the £9m he requires from race organisers in other countries.

It is not yet too late for Silverstone to stage Britain's biggest annual sporting event next summer, but its omission from F1's draft calendar is a major blow.



news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/formula_one/3703294.stm

[Salem6]

Bernie Ecclestone has launched a stinging attack on Silverstone's owners after dumping the British Grand Prix from the Formula One calendar.



The GP was dropped by Ecclestone after the British Racing Drivers' Club failed to match the F1 supremo's financial demands for hosting the race.

"I am pushing the world to raise the standards and our country has one of the worst," he told ITV News.

"We're dealing with a gentlemen's club which is a bit short of gentlemen."

BRDC president Sir Jackie Stewart criticised the Government for not doing enough to support the event.

However, Ecclestone says that it is the BRDC which is at fault.

"We're not dealing with businessmen. They should be running tennis," he said.

"When people want to build new tracks, they want to look at Silverstone. We don't want it built like that. It's quite embarrassing."

Ecclestone did give some hope for Silverstone to return further down the line, provided the circuit can implement the necessary improvements.

"We've said we'd run for two years with the circuit as it is, without those improvements," said Ecclestone.

"We've even said we'll give them an option for 2007 so they can have two years off, get everything done properly, deals done properly and we'll come back in 2007."

The British GP is not the only race under threat as the French GP at Magny Cours could also be dropped to trim the provisional calendar from 19 to 17 races.

China and Bahrain made their debuts on the F1 schedule this season - to take the total to 18 races - and Turkey is due to be added in 2005.

Ecclestone hinted there is a chance that Silverstone could remain on the calendar if the teams agree to an 18-race season.

The final calendar must be ratified by the FIA world council on 13 October.

news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/formula_one/3705746.stm