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LONDON, England – Discontent is brewing over Formula 1's proposed racing calendar for 2016.
A recent (July 2015) meeting of the World Motor Sport Council was followed by the announcement of an “approved” 21-race provisional 2016 schedule.
Not everybody is happy…
'TOUGH FOR THE FACTORY'
Sauber boss Monisha Kaltenborn, for instance, was concerned that stretching the previously agreed limit of 20 races “would require additional staff and resources".
Red Bull's Christian Horner added: "Tough for the whole factory not to have a summer break. I think it's important that we have one."
Another – unnamed – boss from a midfield team told German magazine Auto Motor and Sport: "Each is a violation of the regulations. It is only possible if all the teams agree - and not all of them do."
The report added, however, that no team had yet lodged a formal complaint.
That could be because it is only a provisional calendar and quite often – as in recent seasons - a race or two has been dropped before the schedule was made final.
Germany, for instance, is scheduled to return in 2016 after missing 2015 but F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone said: "I don't know what's going to happen with Germany. We have a contract – if they honour it they should be there."
Another endangered race is the Italian GP at Monza.
"Probably Monza," Ecclestone said when asked by Spain's Movistar F1 if one of the proposed 21 races could be dropped.
...BUT IN SUNNY SUMMER BAKU
Meanwhile, organisers of the first F1 GP at Baku, capital of Azerbaijan, have welcomed their (northern) summer race date on the 2016 calendar.
The race, scheduled for city streets in the former Soviet state, is the one that pushed the F1 schedule beyond 20, but race chief Arif Rahimov was is delighted with the July 17 date.
He was quoted by Russia's Championat as sayng: "From the beginning I asked Ecclestone to give us a summer date. Baku in July is usually 30 to 32 degrees, similar to what we saw in Hungary this year."