Formula One is still working to put on a British Grand Prix in July even if the country imposes quarantine measures on visitors during the COVID-19 crisis, F1 sources said on Sunday. Media reports quoted a government source as saying there would be an exemption for sports, with Formula One and football teams free to travel from Britain and return without restriction once competition resumes.
It said athletes and teams would be expected to undergo a rigorous testing regime and isolate themselves immediately if they tested positive for the novel coronavirus.
Formula One sources told Reuters conversations with the government were ongoing. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in a televised address to the nation on Sunday that “it will soon be the time… to impose quarantine on people coming into this country by air”.
An association representing UK airlines said the government was planning a 14-day quarantine period for most people arriving from abroad to try to avoid a second peak of the coronavirus outbreak. Quarantine would also have big implications for Formula One, with the British Grand Prix at Silverstone scheduled for July 19 — the weekend after teams complete a planned double-header in Austria on July 5 and 12.
The race will be a 70th anniversary for Formula One at the English circuit which hosted the first world championship race in 1950. Seven of the 10 Formula One teams are based in Britain and would be returning from a secure environment in Austria where they would have been effectively isolated for two weeks and repeatedly tested. Silverstone has made clear that its race has to get government approval and cannot be a burden on policing or the medical services.
Britain’s coronavirus death toll – 31,855 – is the second highest in the world, behind the United States.
Regarding the Spanish Grand Prix, which was supposed to take place last weekend, organizers rely on the good climate of the region to host the GP even in the autumn. Catalonia is generally an area of Spain which, during the spring-summer period, offers its best in terms of climate. Even autumn, however, can be a favorable time, even to host Formula 1.
This is at least what the bosses of the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya believe, as the track has been home to the Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix for many years now. The general manager of the Catalan circuit, Joan Fontseré, is continuing work to have a slot in the 2020 Formula 1 calendar after the postponement of the GP.
The Montmelo track is active 320 days a year, including weekends hosting Formula 1 and MotoGP, but also other international championships.
“Conversations with Liberty Media have so far focused on the 2021 season,” Fontseré told FOX Sport Latinoamerica. “In what sense? In the sense that next year the World Cup will have to be very solid, as strong as possible, so to do this, some tests must be done in 2020”.
“The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya has always been available to Liberty Media. In this way, if they find it convenient to race on our track, we will be ready.”
The region, however, would welcome the holding of the event, because – at least in part – it would allow the economy to reactivate while not implying direct benefits.
“If the GP can help the economic recovery, operate the machinery in terms of generating resources by hosting an event of this caliber, then we will make the circuit available to host the event. This would not trigger a direct, but indirect, report that would allow the various sectors related to the event to be put into operation as third parties.” – he concluded.
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