McLaren Team Principal Andreas Seidl has cautioned against continued expansion of the Formula 1 calendar, stressing that the championship has to maintain a level of exclusivity.
Formula 1 expanded to 21 events for 2016, a number it has matched in 2018 and 2019, and next year is poised to increase further to 22 grands prix.
Liberty Media has already agreed deals with Vietnam and the Netherlands, while of the current events only Germany is set to drop from the roster.
Formula 1’s owners are keen to expand the calendar further but Seidl believes this risks lessening the prestige of a grand prix.
“Some details are still in discussion, but in principle we’ve given our support for an extra race in 2020,” said Seidl.
“[We also need to] keep in mind that we need to be very careful of how much more load we put on our people.
“We also need to remember that exclusivity of Formula 1 races is important, and the more races you add, the more that gets diluted.
“I would favour keeping the number of races where it is now and alternating them from one year to the next, in order to create possibilities for new venues to come in.”
Formula 1 is also in the process of finalising the overhauled 2021 regulations and Seidl has stressed that key figures must now make decisions, with the next crucial meeting planned for mid-September.
The 2021 regulations must be ratified by October 31.
“We’re keen to see these resolved as soon as possible,” said Seidl.
“The financial regulations were agreed and committed to in principle in June, which for us is the most important factor, because they contain the budget cap.
“We would’ve preferred to see both the Sporting and Technical regulations issued at the same time, however, these draft regulations are probably going to change very little over the next three months.
“It’s critical now that we don’t waste any more time, and get on with the job of implementing the new regulations to deliver an exciting new era for the sport.”
