Bernie Ecclestone says Bahrain GP cannot be squeezed in without teams’ approval – Formula 1 news
Formula 1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone has stated that the Bahrain Grand Prix cannot be rescheduled in the 2011 Formula 1 season without an approval from all the teams.
The 80-year-old Formula 1 head added that hopefully there will be peace in the country when the sport returns to the country but for the 2011 season, Bahrain is out of the calendar.
After a lot of criticism and questioning of the Formula 1 teams and Human Rights activists, for the first time Ecclestone has voiced against the rescheduling of the Bahrain Grand Prix.
Firstly, Ecclestone said that Bahrain could be rescheduled in December so that the security condition in the country was addressed. However, now he thinks that rescheduling the 2011 calendar will not be possible.
He said, “The schedule cannot be rescheduled without the agreement of the participants - they're the facts.”
This is after the Formula One Teams Association wrote a letter to Formula 1 demanding to leave Bahrain out for the 2011 season mainly due to security reasons and also due to budget escalation.
Ecclestone has been the lone voice in favour of the Bahrain Grand Prix right from the time when it was postponed due to security concerns. In February 2011, when the Bahrain GP was called off, Formula 1 teams took a sigh of relief. On the other hand, Ecclestone
kept the hopes of Bahrain alive but now thinks that it should be axed from the 2011 season.
“Hopefully there'll be peace and quiet and we can return in the future, but of course it's not on,” said Ecclestone.
Previously, the World Motor Sport Council agreed on giving Bahrain a green light for the 2011 season. Their decision was based on the security report from the Spanish motorsport president Carlos Gracia which stated that the security condition of Kingdom
was peaceful.
However, the Human Rights activists in Bahrain kept on mentioning that the security report from Gracia was unrealistic.
Ecclestone’s word on the Bahrain Grand Prix is going to have a deep effect on the future of the race in the Kingdom and will open a new chapter in debate. Let’s see how the story unfolds in the days to come.
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