Argentina has taken its first tentative steps towards a return of its Formula 1 grand prix in Buenos Aires but will have several hurdles to overcome to get there.
Argentina’s former vice president Daniel Scioli, who currently serves as the country’s tourism minister, led a delegation that also included the Argentinian automobile federation president Cesar Carman as they held exploratory talks with F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali.
The dream is for the Argentinian Grand Prix to return to the calendar at the same circuit that last hosted the event, the Autodromo Oscar y Juan Galvez initially built in the 1950s, ideally incorporating part of its longer original loop so modern F1 cars can stretch their legs, rather than the cramped and unpopular layout used in the 90s.
The timing of Scioli’s push coincides with Franco Colapinto’s F1 cameo with Williams – the 21-year-old catching the eye in several ways.
His on-track performances have led to sudden interest from Red Bull to add him to its four-driver roster, while off the track, Colapinto has caused a surge of interest from fans and sponsors in his country, which has only swelled as the championship hit the American continent for its most recent run of races.
While thousands of Argentinian fans were cheering on their new F1 hero at Interlagos, Scioli and his delegation introduced themselves to Domenicali on their fact-finding mission of what it would take to bring the series back to Argentina’s capital.
“I am very proud of what Colapinto is generating as an Argentinian,” Scioli told Motorsport.com.
“His charisma, his human qualities, his quality as a driver are wonderful. At a time when Formula 1 is growing, generating more and more expectations, it is an event that goes beyond sport, with political and social impact.”
Argentinian fans watching the Singapore Grand Prix in Franco Colapinto’s birthplace Pilar, Argentina
Photo by: Municipalidad de Pilar
Asked about the meeting with F1, Scioli replied: “We are starting to work on the possibility of bringing Formula 1 back to Argentina. Stefano knows Argentina very well, he has the best memories of our country.
“The meeting was very cordial, bearing in mind that we are talking about the organisation of an event that is the most sophisticated in the world in terms of logistics of all kinds.
“There is a lot of hard work to be done in order to reach the objective. We have to work on the race track, on all the requirements of an event…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Motorsport.com – Formula 1 – Stories…