The formula 1 is not issued in case of cancellation of the Grand Prix of Australia, the best figure. Although on Friday morning it was already clear that the team would not compete, they had a lot of Fans on the route of pilgrims, where they had to first, in front of closed doors waiting, and then and were sent home. Andrew Westacott explains why everything is so unfortunate.
the chief of The Australian Grand Prix Corporation recalls in the Podcast’ Below the Bonnet’: “Five days before 86,000 people in a Cricket game at the MCG [stadium in Melbourne] were.” And only a week had been cancelled due to the corona crisis, sports events, anywhere in the world. The Grand Prix are located in this window of time, unfortunately right in the middle.
trigger the whole mess was the positive corona test of a McLaren employee on Thursday evening. The Team announced immediately, not at the Grand Prix to participate. There were several Meetings followed, and in the night from Thursday to Friday, the ten formula 1 Teams, a majority have voted in favour of cancelling the race. Officially, it is made the but it was only on Friday morning.
a Lot of people, different time zones …
at this time, there were several pilots already in the aircraft back home. So why was the Public so long in the dark? Westacott explained that various parties had been involved in the talks: “We took Input from the chief medical officer. […] The FIA was involved, the Teams and the formula 1.”
“Also, the government of Victoria [state of Melbourne] was involved, and then there were three different time zones, what has also not helped, to make the right decisions,” says Westacott. Background: FIA President Jean Todt was at this time in Europe, formula 1 Boss Chase Carey was on Thursday still in Vietnam.
“There were various scenarios. You thought about whether you can do without the formula 1,” says Westacott also. You have to inform the audience is aware, as soon as you have made a final decision. “That’s why it came out, unfortunately, that some of the Fans [on Friday morning] were frustrated in front of the gates,” said the Promoter.
Late cancellation of a homemade Problem?
already knew that the formula 1 Teams will not travel. “But such things need to be ratified in talks with the FIA, Jean Todt, formula 1, and Chase Carey and finalized,” he explains. The ten Teams have not alone to cancel it already, for legal reasons, even the authority of a Grand Prix on their own.
Also reminds Westacott: “Chase Carey sat at precisely the time when it all happened, in a plane out of Vietnam.” The final decision is delayed even further. David Richards, Chairman of the British Federation of Motorsport UK and a former team principal of BAR and Benetton, meanwhile, believes that the formula 1 has made life unnecessarily difficult.
“In the decision on Australia Liberty was very late,” he criticizes to the news Agency ‘PA’ and declared: “I do not claim that it was an easy decision. But when you consider how many people from various European countries travelled to Australia, then it was [in the light of the corona crisis] is not appropriate.”
His conclusion: “you have a week in advance, and can cancel.” So you could have spared itself at least in a lot of Trouble and bad press.
This article was written by Ruben Zimmermann, Co-author: Andrew van Leeuwen
*The contribution of “Bad Timing: Melbourne Promoter explains unfortunate cancellation” is published by Motorsport-Total.com. Contact with the executives here.
Motorsport-Total.com
