F1 boss admits London Grand Prix proposals are ‘invasive’ and ‘not realistic’. London GP proposals ‘invasive’ and ‘not realistic’.

Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali has confirmed that it is “not realistic” for Formula 1 to run a London Grand Prix to the sport in the neat future. The recent expansion of the calendar has led to a 23-GP schedule for next season, but the former Ferrari boss admitted that taking the sport to the heart of England’s capital is not on the cards for several key factors, including due to the disruption it would cause.

“In life, I always say never say never, but we are not here to sell something that is not realistic” – Stefano Domenicali said, as reported by Standard Sport – “I would say we already have Silverstone with British support and a unique place. Coming to a city like London would be quite invasive and difficult for the community to manage it.”

The initial idea was to see the Docklands area of East London have investment piled into it to create a sports and entertainment complex, which had the possibility of featuring a circuit which could host Formula 1 race at one stage. Mayor of London Sadiq Khan had reportedly set aside the funding to make this idea a reality, but Stefano Domenicali does not agree with the plan of seeing an area outside of the city centre host a Formula 1 Grand Prix.

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“I wouldn’t go in this direction. When you think of something so prestigious, you need to be in the heart of the city. Otherwise, you devalue it. I don’t think that is realistic to think in the short term this could happen. I see more of a possibility in the future is to have a fan demonstration within the city, but hosting a race in such an incredible city as London I don’t see is possible to happen, at least in the short term.” – he added.

Formula 1’s headquarters are in London – where the sport was created – so F1 and the city have been heavily linked throughout history, but the possibility of hosting a race in what Domenicali called the “home town for Formula 1″ is not on the cards for now.

Having said that, however, the Formula 1 boss said the city remains a massive part of how the sport operates: “London has been part of Formula 1. Formula 1 was born here, so I wouldn’t see any other place where you can see the same home town for Formula 1. We are in the heart of London and we breathe that as part of our DNA.” – the former Ferrari boss concluded.