Stefano Domenicali, president and CEO of Formula 1, arrived on Monday in Barranquilla, Colombia, to discuss about the possibility of building a Formula 1 circuit in the city.
Stefano Domenicali flew from Mexico to Colombia in a private plane and landed at 16:25 Colombian local time, as reported by El Heraldo. He was accompanied by the director of the Mexican Grand Prix, Luis García Abad, and by the promoters of the Mexican race.
This visit comes after the mayor of Barranquilla, Jaime Pumarejo, publicly announced in September that negotiations were underway.
The Colombian information systems administrator and politician hinted at a Caribbean Grand Prix that would be attended by 120,000 fans a day.
“The negotiations are progressing favorably, but there is still a lot to do. We are still working on it, that is, it is a real, concrete possibility; it is a financially sustainable project that brings investment to the city as it is promoted by the private sector. It is not yet a reality, but we are in the running and we hope to reach the finish line. We don’t want to create false expectations yet. Stefano has been learning the city and its diversity, seeing different options, but a specific circuit has not been selected.” – Jaime Pumarejo said in September.
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“The event will last three days, which means that more than 300,000 people would come to see the show, but the important thing is that it is estimated that between 60 and 110,000 people will arrive from abroad in a Grand Prix of this magnitude. It would be the event with the highest turnover in all of Colombia. A Formula 1 GP bills 2.5 times in three days what the Bogotá Corferias fairground bills at least throughout the year.” – he pointed out.
“If we sign, the event would be held in 2024 or 2025. The contract, hopefully, could last ten years.” – he specified.
It will be necessary to see if Stefano Domenicali’s visit will bring about progress in this sense. It would be premature to make any conclusions about the 2024 Formula 1 calendar, but with Colombia and South Africa vying for a slot, it is certainly worth watching this space.
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