At the very least South Africa, Argentina and Mexico have some history within F1, and we have a Russian team now.
http://www.crash.net/f1/news/175839/1/french_gp_deal_for_2013_to_be_signed_imminently.html Aww, damn it!
No Spa, AGAIN!!!! For me there are 4 tracks that epitomise F1. Silverstone, Monaco (although I'm not a fan), Spa and Monza. These are the races that all the drivers want to win, and are special tracks. I personally have no wish to buy an F1 game that doesn't include Spa, and considering that's a highly profitable bit of licensing (possibly the best earner after TV revenue), a flank attack may be a better idea, all the people who buy this game (which always gets to no.1 on sales lists every release) are fans of F1, and how many F1 fans don't love Spa?
It would be crass to make light of the financial well-being of others, but an extra good race a season is at stake here. So here's hoping that one of the race organisers in Spain decide that the cost of the event is no longer viable. EDIT: That's what happens when you start using this site as your primary source of F1 news in the close-season! Hope Bernie tells the Spanish government to get stuffed.
maybe in 2015 the british Grand Prix will be down his driveway, although, to be fair, I do like the Paul Ricard.
Magny Cours could be on stand by if Paul Ricard cant do it. Apparently Magny cours has been rebuilding its self slowly in the region with a new amusment park and housing developments in the area in an effort to boost its local economy and revive the french GP.
Money. Don't you just hate it? I used to watch F1 but only occasionally now. Time was I marvelled at the skill of SChumacher and even enjoyed his thuggish tussles with Hill and Villeneuve, but his comeback has ended once and for all the arguments about driver vs machine - it's about the machjine now, and with very little between the majority of drivers. The driver these days with their commercial deals and sponsors events may as well be dummies. Despite all this, the one race I really look forward to is Spa (and Silverstone). It's obvious to anyone what the value of this race is to the sport. If Spa goes, that really will end it with F1 for me.
Only because they are operating on certain budget levels. If Bernie wants 30 races a year, then the teams will just increase the budget to whatever is needed. If there is money to be made, it is very possible. If you break the calender up into zones, then each team could have two mechanical teams for instance - one per zone.
If it's the difference between a drive and no drive it's not going to take long for that clause to disapear. Like I said, if there is a demand for more races, from tv and tracks, and the funding is in place, the teams can accomodate.
I could be mistaken but I think the Concorde Agreement stipulates a maximum of twenty races (not sure what the new agreement will say). Increasing this significantly (or even at all) would fly in the face of cost-cutting, which F1 is committed to for more than simply internal reasons. There is still (just about) a prestige associated with F1 that adding more and more events would diminish. Personally I believe twenty races per season is the absolute maximum F1 can sustain and it wouldn't surprise me to learn that a twenty-race calendar takes account of one or two being dropped.
