Canadian Grand Prix organisers resist F1's date change for sustainability?
Jun.14 - Organisers of the Canadian GP are resisting Formula 1's efforts to change the time of year in which the annual race in Montreal takes place.
The event at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve has a contract with F1 until 2031, but that hasn't stopped the sport's boss Stefano Domenicali from kicking off talks about a date change.
That is because, now with three races in the United States each year and with F1 also heading to Mexico and Canada, it makes much more sense to group the North American rounds together for logistical reasons.
"This has been discussed for a long time," Canada GP boss Francois Dumontier told La Presse, "and I fully understand the reasoning of the governing bodies.
"On paper, it's an easy problem to solve. But that's actually far from being the case in reality. And with 23 events on its calendar, F1 must deal with 23 different realities."
Dumontier said the biggest "sticking point" with a proposed date change for Montreal is "mainly the weather".
He insists Formula 1 isn't pressuring him, but at the same time admitted he may be open to a compromise.
"I can hardly even imagine a race before the beginning of June," he said.
Another issue, Dumontier adds, is that the track on the artificial island Il Notre Dame - part of Montreal's third largest park complex - is not permanent.
"It takes time to put everything in place and in doing so, we risk disrupting the activities of Parc Jean-Drapeau," he said. "And, in the fall, we could also find ourselves in conflict with congresses, for example."
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Some compromises are necessary for the long-term carbon neutral target.
May is mostly warm, especially when looking at last & this year, so perfectly okay for the Canadian GP, especially the month's latter half, so Dumontier's June-beginning reference is misleading & inaccurate.
The circuit isn't temporary per se, but rather a semi-temporary permanent circuit or multi-purpose, meaning only little set-up versus the street or full temporary circuits.
Lastly, what congresses? Not that autumn beyond mid-September is necessary good for holding the Canadian GP anyway because of temps becoming unstable & colder, but how would holding during some local (Montreal-specifically or Quebec generally) congresses be unideal.
What do "congresses" have to do with the price of beans? I have spent many fall days in the Laurentians. The weather in Montreal is beautiful until at least the middle of October. Seems to me the park preparation would be less troublesome at that time.
Beautiful, yes, but not necessarily warm anymore, especially in October apart from an occasional single warm days here & there, depending on a given year.
The inaugural 1978 race on October 5 was very cool at 5C, iirc the figure.
Summer is the most ideal time of year for F1 in Montreal.
When tyre warmers are banned , as long as its dry the temperature wont be an issue anyway
Less of an issue in dry-weather conditions but still an issue in single or low double-digits, although June is far better for temp stability & weather generally than October anyway.
Jere, get this straight. I have raced in Quebec well into October. Yes, it might only warm to 50'sF, but that is very comfortable racing weather. It would be ideal if every race was in 75F weather, but that is not the case. It might be in the 90's, it might be in the 50's....no harm. Stop with the weather analysis, my friend.
Then explain why F1 stopped going to Montreal in the autumn after 1981.
Jere, give it a rest. Of course EVERY track wants a summer race and so they negotiate. For heavens sake, the race didn't even move to Montreal until the late 70's. Before that, F1 was at Mosport or St. Jovite in the friggin' Laurentian MOUNTAINS and it ran in late September, and the USGP was upstate NY in October. I lived and raced in the region for many years. Not ideal, but perfectly race worthy weather. Honestly, my friend, you have no argument. Stop it. :):):)
You seemingly missed my point & can't explain why F1 eventually stopped running the Canadian GP in the autumn after having done the first four Montreal races at that time of year (the inaugural race on October 8, I mistakenly typed October 5 before, with the following three in late-September).
I don't see much point in continuing our pointless argument.
They should just be grateful they've a long race contract till 31, BUT like all contracts they can be reneged on, lots of Iconic circuits are going almost year on year SS included, , cant wait home race live on terrestrial tv
Indeed, contracts are also made to know how to get rid of each other in case one of them wants to end the cooperation...
Indeed
WANTED
Fia F1 weather person to start immediately due to unexpected vacancy.
I was at every cdn Gp at Mosport and every usgp at the Glen, all in late September or early November. For sure the weather was often cold and rainy. In particular, I remember the Formula Libre race in 1959 which ran in snowy weather. Similarly the Grand Free race at Mosport in 1975 which ran on the date of the cancelled GP, was very cold.
Even the groundhogs are getting ready to hibernate by then.