Last weekend’s race at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in Mexico City attracted a sell-out crowd of 397,000 fans over three days, once again making it one of the best-attended races of the season.
The continued strong fan presence in Mexico comes amid F1’s current boom in the neighbouring United States, which will host three races next year in Miami, Austin and Las Vegas. With grands prix also taking place in Canada and Brazil, there will be six races in the Americas in 2023.
But amid continued interest from countries in hosting a grand prix in the future, Alejandro Soberon, the chief executive of CIE that promotes the race in Mexico, felt there would be scope to add another event in the Americas.
“We love competition, it’s good, because it keeps you in shape and alert,” said Soberon.
“Three races in the States, before, it was unthinkable. Today it even looks reasonable.
“I think Miami is going to be a very big success. You saw the attendance in Austin. It’s much better than other years, it’s a stronger race. And all the presales in Vegas are through the roof. So I think that’s good for the region, for the timezone, that is very good.
“So with Canada, three races [in the United States], Mexico, and Brazil, the question is if there room for another one? My personal belief is there is room for another one.
“But it doesn’t have to go against another race in the same timezone. It can go against another timezone. So who’s going to be at risk, how competitive is that offer? It’s going to be very interesting.”
Lance Stroll, Aston Martin, waves to the crowd on the drivers’ parade
Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images
Mexico announced on Thursday that it had signed a new three-year contract, ensuring F1 will continue to visit the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez until at least 2025.
But Soberon explained that come the next renewal, there could be a new government and city mayor in place following the elections in 2024.
Mexico initially returned to the calendar in 2015 with a deal that was funded by the federal government, but a change in the government meant the Mexico City mayor and her administration took over securing the funding for the race for the existing deal and the renewal.
Soberon felt confident the grand prix would continue to get national support regardless of the ruling bodies, believing everyone in the country was “very proud about the race.”
“They love Checo [Perez], what he’s…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Motorsport.com – Formula 1 – Stories…