British GP to move to Donnington

BBC SPORT | Motorsport | Formula One | British GP to move to Donington

It's been rumoured for a few weeks, as they are more likely to stump up the extra £11M Bernie Ecclescake wants. I thought it was a trick by Bernie to force Silverstone to come to his way of thinking.

Its official

The British Grand Prix

There would also have to be massive investment at Donington, as the facility's aren't even as good as Silverstone currently has.

Blimey. I love Donington but I'm not sure this is a great idea. I suspect they will have to make huge changes to the current track layout which will be a real shame.

Oh, and one other thing - no one book a holiday flying out of East Midlands that weekend!!

Originally Posted by Chill

Its official

The British Grand Prix

F*** Me.












That Bernie's a dark horse.

oh dear,after all that money was spent on the a43 approach to silverstone
i like donnington park but no way is up to the international standards of silverstone,getting in and out of the track is an absolute nightmare
money talking again i think

I think they promised to build an underground bunker for Max Mosley - that's what swung it.

I have to admit. I am surprised too. I thought it was part of Bernie's negotiation strategy. Maybe it isn't actually a done deal yet - despite the press comment. Clever and crafty man is old Bernie .

What I don't understand is if his main motivation for change was that Silverstone isn't good enough then why move to an inferior circuit?

It would take more than a year for them to get up to where Silverstone is right now I'd have thought.

No disrespect to Donington as I haven't been for years but everyone says it isn't as good and they have agreed the need for major improvements.

what a joke, could they not have done this BEFORE silverstone spent 10's of millions upgrading the circuit and the infrastructure,they have been buying land left right and centre to bring the track and surroundings up to scratch, the brdc have been bending over backwards for years to keep the poison dwarf happy now just as silverstone is beginning to come up to scratch he shafts them big style.

how exactly are donnington going to come up to scratch in 2 years when its taken silverstone 10 and they still arent quite there.

i fear donnington will get shafted in exactly the same way in 10 years time, then it will be silverstones turn to slip an unmarked envelope into his back pocket

if donnington is such a wonderful track perfect for F1 as surely it must be to take it away from silverstone, then why hasnt it hosted the european gp again

oh and the timing is spot on, well done bernie you fcukwit

apparently donnington have paid 100million for it and bernie has an 'interest' in the redevolpment of donny

Bernie wants to move the Grand Prix out of Britain altogether.

Could this be the first move in that plan?

Ecclestone – the man who redefined the word “avarice”. He really is an A1 Sh.. - timing his announcement to maximise his contempt for Silverstone and the BRDC.

And his pal MM will probably fly in by Heinkel

Wherever the GP ends up, this move can only be good for the sport. Silverstone is a dreadful spectator experience; I spent an enjoyable three hours getting out of the car park yesterday, made only bearable by the fact that it is one of the best tracks on the calendar.

Bernie is a business man first and foremost and he knows removing the British GP from the championship would be like committing commercial suicide. So, it ain't gonna happen. He is initiating a threat that's been hovering over the heads of the BRDC for years; pull your fingers out or lose the GP. No one can say they weren't given fair warning, but they were conceited enough to think that he wouldn't carry out the threat as there wasn't another circuit up to the required standard. Donnington might have a huge task to get it to that standard, but Simon Gillett inspires me much more than the trustees at Silverstone.

Originally Posted by Snapper_Five

He is initiating a threat that's been hovering over the heads of the BRDC for years; pull your fingers out or lose the GP. No one can say they weren't given fair warning,

He's made the threat every year, and Silverstone has improved every year as he's requested.

TBH Silverstone is a rubbish spectator circuit. Then donnington isn't the best either.

Given the budget to bring up to internation standard, Brands would be the jewel in the British crown. One of the best circuits in the world.

Originally Posted by HSTDriver

He's made the threat every year, and Silverstone has improved every year as he's requested.

They've paid lip-service to it, investing as little as they thought they could get away with. Silverstone operated by a Trust and the money is never going to be there to bring it up to the standard required. Donnington (and Brands for that matter) are commercial enterprises and that, like it or hate it, is the only way the British GP is going to survive.

Donington is good in so far as it has an 'arena' so that you can see more than one bit of the circuit if you are careful. Silverstone is preety good for TV viewers, but being there you can't see that much unless you are high up.

On the other hand, Donington is not big enough, its a bit of a mickey mouse circuit, and the pits are tiny. They will have to spend millions to get it up to Silverstone standard, and the road connections are dire, so will they get the permissions to make all those changes?

Ecclescakes a complete bar steward really though.

AlfaLincs (back from a week in sunny Madeira )

But look at it from Ecclescake's point of view; he's running a business - quite a successful business, it must be said - and he has these burks not pulling their weight. What would you do if it was your business? He had to do something and at least Donners is willing to have a go. If they are successful with their plan to raise the funds (£100M) through a debenture, it would mean that the track is funded and owned in part by the fans. Even though the debenture holders wouldn't have voting rights, it's still an attractive prospect for the average F1 fan on the street, IMHO.