Silverstone offered to host '12' Formula 1 races

Silverstone managing director Stuart Pringle has revealed that the circuit was open to holding as many as 12 F1 races over a period of months.

The original schedule for 2020 was put on the shelf and Formula 1 chiefs went about bringing together a new one.

So far they are up to 13 rounds with guest appearances from Mugello, the Nurburgring, Portimao and Imola all confirmed for 2020.

Silverstone also features on the calendar with the Northamptonshire track joining the Red Bull Ring in hosting two rounds of the season.

The first race will be the traditional British Grand Prix, whilst the second event on the following weekend is being called the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix.

But never mind two, at one point in the negotiations Silverstone were offering to stage up to 12 races.

“We said, ‘we’ll support however we can’ – within the grounds of reasonableness,” Pringle told Autosport.

“But at one stage we offered to make the track available for a period of months.

“If they could get a championship away from one location – at one stage it looked like nothing could happen and the answer was ‘ship in the Italian teams and Swiss team, and the Pirelli guys, and park them at Silverstone for a couple of months and run 12 races around Silverstone and make television if that’s what you need?’.”

The @F1 Pirelli British Grand Prix weekend is coming in 7 days ??

Who's ready? ??

Where will you be watching from ?#BritishGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/I6j7tCsInN

— Silverstone (@SilverstoneUK) July 24, 2020

Of course having 12 races at the same venue could have proven to be rather boring for Formula 1 fans, something which Pringle said was the reason for the series only wanting to stage two at Silverstone.

“The view was taken pretty quickly that that would be a bit dull, but they came back and said ‘actually, two [would] be quite helpful,” he explained.

“And if you bag, within the first month, half the races you need for a World Championship by going to two venues that you know you can control with a tight bubble, quarantine, whatever, then that’s a massive leg up on your journey towards securing eight races for a World Championship.”

The teams have enjoyed a rare weekend off due to the UK’s quarantine laws before descending on Silverstone for the British Grand Prix from July 31-August 2.

Formula 1 will be back at the circuit then on the following weekend to contest the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix, that being the 70th anniversary for the Formula 1 World Championship.

Mercedes have won six of the last seven races at Silverstone, with five of them going to Lewis Hamilton.

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