Post here all non technical related topics about Formula One. This includes race results, discussions, testing analysis etc. TV coverage and other personal questions should be in Off topic chat.
Nah, Melbourne ain't canned, at least until 2015. They had some competition from Eastern Creek in Sydney.
I also too liked the old A1 Ring, shame it was knocked off the calendar, but the DTM will probably return to the track by 2012, but I don't think F1 will return.
While reading James Allen on the possible FOTA breakaway series I noticed A1-Ring in the list of possible tracks (alongside Silverstone, Imola etc.). I naturally thought there could be some developments at Spielberg and went to google image search... and found this
Red Bull Racing owner Dietrich Mateschitz's plans to redevelop the A1-Ring – the former Austrian Grand Prix venue – at a cost of E700m have been canned after objections from an environmental government panel were upheld.
The federal Environmental Senate of Austria concluded that the project in the Styrian mountain region would exceed noise and air pollution standards.
The project leader for the Red Bull development centre, Norbert Kraihammer, told Austrian daily newspaper Salzburger Nachrichten that the verdict was "quite unexpected".
"We accept this verdict from a neutral position without evaluating," he added.
The A1 Ring circuit still exists, but all the infrastructure from pit buildings to grandstands have already been demolished. Mateschitz has indicated however that his involvement in the project is now at an end.
"The project is finished for us," said Mateschitz told another paper, Kleine Zeitung. The billionaire drinks magnate claims he only got involved after he was asked to do so by the local authorities of the Speilberg region. "We were asked to do something. This has now been rejected. We do not need a race track where no cars can race."
And with a new local government there as well, maybes they can see the plans that were circulated with those who "need to know" but never published can come to fruition and the Austrian GP be back on the F1 callander in the next 5-6 years. Give us anoter higher downforce track on the callander like Hungary and Interlagos would be my dream.
The old west loop will be re-opened and will be an option to the shorter "new" layout. So essentially 95% of the old and 100% of the new Östereichring will be available.
Formula One's fundamental ethos is about success coming to those with the most ingenious engineering and best ..............................organization, not to those with the biggest budget. (Dave Richards)
Im gonns say it now, that if there was ever a F1 race back there, it would be spectacular!!! Even if it was on the short track, id be happy enough, but the old track would be a freaking dream!!!
The short track would be a track that would be highly dependant on high downforce and good traction and breaking, the new-old-track would be great for the current Red Bull, good in high speed corners but also needing good downforce and such.
TO go off topic here; If someone came up to me in the street and said to me heres a couple of billion (not gonna happen i know) id probably take over Donnington and try and do a rescue like whats going on here, get it up to DTM and FIA GT1/F1 testing standard first, then try and get it to F1 standard. This should now be the buisness model for Donningtons revival and revovery.
Ideally if i were to have a perfect F1 callander, id have this track on a role of say 10 that F1 visited every say 5 to 10 years for what i think should be the European GP, where the European GP dosnt stay in one place, it visits tracks that are of standard and can only afford a race once every 5-10 years for instance. The tracks on that list would be;
A1 Ring/Red Bull Ring
Donnington (If it were of standard)
Portamao
Imola
Magney Cours
Zandvort
A track in Germany, Belgum and somewhere else would be ideal.
We need a "fresh" european track once a year i feel, and this incarnation of the A1 ring would certanly meet those needs.
The old west loop will be re-opened and will be an option to the shorter "new" layout. So essentially 95% of the old and 100% of the new Östereichring will be available.
Seems identical to the A1-Ring of the early 2000-s. I watched some onboards, looks like a couple of walls were moved away from the track, and that's it.
Sweet looking, no denying that.