Seems that Grand Prix circuits are dropping like flies for next season, Monza [Italian GP] is all but off the 2006 calendar after a dozy Italian judge ruled that motorsport that doesn’t meet the stringent noise regulations is not allowed to take place at Ferrari’s home track. Now it’s looking likely that the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps could well be off the Formula One calendar as well unless a new promoter can be found after DDGP [last year’s promoter] fell by the wayside after being bailed out last year by the local Walloon government to the tune of 15,000,000 Euros. But the government has made it clear that isn’t an option this year. A spokesperson from the local Walloon government said “We are searching for a solution for the grand prix, but not at any price” and I think that’s fair, as the amount of money that F1’s commercial rights owner Bernie Ecclestone is demanding is nothing short of extortionate. Ecclestone needs to stop thinking about his bank balance and drop the cost of hosting the race at Spa, as it would be catastrophic to lose such a great ‘drivers’ circuit, the drivers, teams and fans alike love the Belgian track, so it would be such a shame if the Spa race was dropped because of money issues. Let’s hope that Bernie sees sense and drops the price of holding the race or even allowing Spa-Francorchamps to hold the event for free, or even promote the race himself! It’s fast looking like the 19 race 2006 calendar could become a 17 race calendar unless solutions can be found for both Monza and Spa-Francorchamps, let’s hope that Bernie sees sense on the Belgian GP shall we?
Additional: Because I am bored and can’t log onto Trillian, for some reason Winblows throws up a critical exception error [which I have no idea is about], will have to reinstall the application at some point when I find the original executable, which is on a CDR somewhere. Anyway, been reading back on some of my blog entries and found this from the first time I gave up on the Phoenix Live Galleries, think I was having a sarcasm overload!
