Donnington Park was meant to be the new home for the Formula 1 British Grand Prix as of next year for the next seventeen years but now it looks like Silverstone may in fact be back in the race to get to retain it if Donnington Park don’t come up with funds!
Donnington Park have been given 14 days to get the £50 million that it said it would raise to host the 2010 British Grand Prix by Bernie Ecclestone.
Ecclestone is the man who basically owns the rights to Formula One and calls the shots as to what happens with it and he may well open negotiations up again with the owners of Silverstone, the British Racing Drivers’ Club, if Donnington Park do not come up with the money.
The BRDC will not go for a one year deal that would act as a stop-gap to allow Donnington Park to get themse;lves sorted for the next year, they will want a longer 17 year deal to keep the British Grand Prix at Silverstone.
Ecclestone claimed that Silverstone had in the past promised things that did not happen and he will not stand for this to happen again. There was so many years where Silverstone race circuit was not up to scratch to host the Grand Prix and it has taken allot of time, money and effort to bring it to the standard that it is today.
Ex-Formula 1 world Champion Damon Hill is the BRDC’s president and has said:
We want to provide a really great venue for the fans but in order to do that we will need to have the kind of contract which provides enough scope to develop the facilities without too much risk to the company going bust.
We shall have to see in 2 weeks time if Donnington Park can secure the funds or if Silverstone will in fact be back in the game and maybe able to keep their hands on the British Formula one Grand Prix.