Catalan government grants funding for 2020 Spanish GP
The Catalan government has announced it will grant financial backing to fund the Spanish Grand Prix for 2020, with next season’s Formula 1 campaign likely to expand to 22 rounds.
Following reports which emerged last week that the Catalan government would fund a one-year deal to keep the Spanish round on the F1 calendar, officials have confirmed a subsequent agreement has been met which is set to “guarantee the celebration of the 30th consecutive edition of this event” at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.
The Catalan government has announced it will grant financial backing to fund the Spanish Grand Prix for 2020, with next season’s Formula 1 campaign likely to expand to 22 rounds.
Following reports which emerged last week that the Catalan government would fund a one-year deal to keep the Spanish round on the F1 calendar, officials have confirmed a subsequent agreement has been met which is set to “guarantee the celebration of the 30th consecutive edition of this event” at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.
The track released a statement last weekend to clarify reports, outlining no deal had officially been reached with F1 on the 2020 Spanish round.
But following a funding agreement with the Catalan government, the Spanish GP looks set to stay on next season’s F1 calendar.
El #Govern autoritza la pròrroga per un any del contracte per a l’organització del Gran Premi de @F1 a Catalunya. La posterior signatura garantirà la celebració de la 30a edició consecutiva d’aquest esdeveniment al @Circuitcat_cat de Barcelona-Catalunya, a Montmeló pic.twitter.com/F8Bm0n6n9s
— Govern. Generalitat (@govern) August 1, 2019
With the new rounds in Vietnam and the Netherlands joining the 2020 F1 calendar, next season will expand to 22 races making it the biggest F1 world championship in history.
Germany is expected to drop off the F1 calendar following its one-year extension this season thanks to funding from title sponsors Mercedes.
The crammed F1 calendar could pose scheduling headaches for the sport’s organising body, with the Australian Grand Prix the only race which currently has an official date, March 15, before heading to Bahrain, China and Vietnam at the start of the season.
That could see the Netherlands and Spain run back-to-back before a one-week break ahead of the Monaco Grand Prix.
The official 2020 F1 world championship race calendar is yet to be formally confirmed by the FIA and Liberty Media and will need approving through the FIA World Motor Sport Council.
