Had it not been for the cancellation of the Grands Prix in China (strict health rules around COVID-19) and Emilia-Romagna (floods), the F1 calendar would have featured 23 events this year. The longest season in the history of this championship created in 1950. And the most geographically diversified too.
The Formula 1 circus pitches its tent in 21 countries – spanning five continents – over a nine-month period. A real logistical headache, but also the biggest source of pollution in this championship which aspires to achieve carbon neutrality by 2030.
Formula 1 executives want to group Grands Prix in a more logical way in the future, and in doing so, put an end to the anachronism that is the Canadian Grand Prix. Clearly, F1 would like to postpone the event which takes place on the Gilles-Villeneuve circuit to reschedule it on a common route with the other North American Grands Prix.
Currently, Formula 1 is studying two possible scenarios. The first would be to graft the Canadian Round on to the Miami Grand Prix. This is presented at the beginning of May. The second would be to position the Canadian GP ahead of the Austin (Texas) and Mexico events in the fall.
François Dumontier, President and CEO of the Canadian Grand Prix, is well aware of these conversations and paddock noises. “This has been discussed for a long time and I fully understand the reasoning of the governing bodies,” said Mr. Dumontier.
Mr. Dumontier, who confirms that he is not under any pressure from F1, nevertheless opens the door to certain compromises on the date by advancing his event by a week or two. “You can hardly imagine a presentation before the beginning of June,” he says.
As for the fall, don’t think about it, even though the first four Montreal editions of the Canadian GP were held in September (1979, 1980, 1981) and October (1978). “It takes time to put everything in place and in doing so, we risk disrupting the activities of Parc Jean-Drapeau. In addition, in the fall, we could also find ourselves in conflict with congresses, for example. »
The contractual agreement between the Canadian Grand Prix and Formula 1 expires in 2031.
