The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya is fully prepared to host the Spanish Grand Prix at any point in the European summer, according to circuit director Joan Fonsere.
Postponed from its original May 10 date due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Fonsere has revealed his circuit is completely at Formula 1’s disposal, should the series start racing.
“They [F1 owners Liberty Media] asked us if there is any date which is not possible for us, and we said ‘no’,” Fonsere said to Autosport. “We want to run the event, and we can manage and organise everything to help F1.
“In a regular year, August in Spain everyone is on holiday, but I think 2020 will be an exceptional year, with a completely different calendar.
“If you talked to me one year ago I would have said, ‘Please, not August! But now it’s OK, also because the reduced format of the event would be a good starting point not just for the track facility, but also for the hotels surrounding the area – not starting in a full throttle way.
“We can run an event like that with no spectators in two or three weeks.”
The final year in which the circuit has a guaranteed spot on the F1 calendar, Fonsere indicated he hopes this can be a means to secure another long-term contract, for which he has the Catalan government’s full backing.
“The Catalan government once again has given us a big hand on that.
“It would be easy for them to say this year there is no F1, because there is no date, there are no healthy conditions, and there is no money at all.
“Those three reasons would be enough to say forget about that.
“But they say we need to have F1 stronger in 2021, so we need to be there in 2020. They want a long-term agreement, and if we are not thinking like a one-year event.”
At the same time, Spain’s inclusion in the 2020 season might be prohibited given it has been particularly hard-hit by the coronavirus, with 232,128 cases in the country at the time of writing.