Bernie Ecclestone has hinted that Turkey could be a casualty of the growing Formula One calendar and the 20-race limit.
With India joining next season, the calendar will, for the first time, feature 20 races. However, Texas and Russia are set to join in 2012 and 2014 respectively, meaning some races will need to be axed to meet the self-imposed limit.
In an interview with the Guardian newspaper, the 79-year-old hinted that Turkey could opt to take a break as the public interest in the event is the lowest of any race – something that confuses the F1 mogul.
“I think we’ll find a way to keep it to 20 somehow,” he said. “Maybe someone will decide they need a rest because it’s not working for them commercially.
“A good example is probably Turkey. They’ve built an incredible circuit and it might even be the best – but there’s not much enthusiasm from the public. I don’t know why,” he admitted.
Ecclestone then went on to hint that the popular Belgium event might be scrapped if the government backing it currently receives is dropped.
“If it [Spa] wasn’t supported by the government over there it probably would go because they wouldn’t be able to afford it.”
