Formula One Group CEO Bernie Ecclestone and Tavo Hellmund, managing partner of Full Throttle Productions talked about the first US Grand Prix to be held in Austin, Texas.
“First of all, when Formula One returns to the United States we wanted to go to a place that has global recognition. Texas fulfils that perfectly, so Tavo’s plan and our needs matched perfectly,” said Bernie Ecclestone to Formula 1.com. “And Austin is so beautiful. Anyone visiting for the first time will be very impressed.” Tavo Hellmund added that the new circuit would also be impressive. “It will be amazing! I have conveyed my ideas to Hermann Tilke and Peter Wahl who are the most established racetrack architects of our times,” said Hellmund. “The area has natural elevation differences, which promises a fast track with difficult corners. But the most essential thing is that has to be a masterpiece in its suitability for fans. Spectators have to be able to see large parts of the track from wherever they are. The layout is just about to be finished and we will present it to the FIA in September.” The two men then talked about the importance of having a local driver in the race. “Of course it would be fantastic to have an American driver. A team would be great, sure, but it’s no real necessity,” said Hellmund. “But I see different options. There is that young Mexican driver Perez who is doing a great job in GP2 right now. For him the 2012 US Grand Prix could be a sort of home race: the distance from Austin to Mexico is a mere 250 kilometres!” “Regarding an American driver, we have tried that lately but obviously what’s missing is the right attitude. You can race successfully in the US without the huge effort you need to succeed in Formula One. But to have someone like Danica Patrick in F1 would be a perfect advert,” Ecclestone added. The date of the 2012 race has not been decided but Ecclestone has his own idea. “We have to wait and see, but it would be logical to place it close to the race in Montreal and that would mean somewhere in June.”
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