The huge turnout at the British Grand Prix showed why Formula One cannot turn its back on Silverstone, according to managing director Ross Brawn.
A bumper crowd of 140,000 attended the race on Sunday, with the tally for the entire weekend coming in at 340,000. Despite regular big crowds the future of the Silverstone race is in doubt after it triggered a break clause in its contract last year which will end its tenure as host after 2019 unless it reaches a new deal with F1.
Although Brawn is keen to save the event and secure a long-term deal, he said the tactics of circuit owners the British Racing and Drivers’ Club (BRDC) has complicated matters.
“I am sure we are going to find a solution with Silverstone because we can’t leave this behind,” Brawn told Sky Sports. “The frustration is the negotiations are taking place in public.’
“Every other circuit we deal with we do it quietly and get on with it. For some reason Silverstone choose to make everything public which causes more difficulty, but we will find a solution. I love this place, we all have so many great memories. It’s a very important race for Formula One.”
Silverstone hosted the first world championship race in 1950. F1 bosses looked into the possibility of moving next year’s race up the calendar to April so it could host the 1,000th race, but that honour will instead go to the Chinese Grand Prix.