The smell of Formula 1 is increasingly intense in Madrid. And not only because the ribbon of the official exhibition that covers the history of the competition has just been cut, but because there is already open talk, openly, that the competition will land, not long after, in the capital of Spain. It was done by the CEO of F1, the affable Stefano Domenicali, Fernando Alonso's former boss at Ferrari, in one of the corners of IFEMA's Hall 1. "We are working to bring Formula 1 to Madrid," said the boss of the Gran Circo behind the scenes.

No one hides anymore. No one sets deadlines, but the road is more than begun. "They are the ones who have to approve the project, we do not set deadlines," said José Vicente de los Mozos, head of IFEMA, whose role in promoting the race is vital. "Things are going well, although it takes time. But it's going well," he added when asked by this newspaper. And he added: "Our goal is to improve the economy of Madrid and bring great things, but we are still working on that option."

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The Formula 1 Grand Prix at Ifema would leave 450 million euros a year in Madrid

  • Writing: JAIME RODRÍGUEZ Madrid

The Formula 1 Grand Prix at Ifema would leave 450 million euros a year in Madrid

The project, as De los Mozos himself acknowledged, and had advanced Domenicali himself, is already in the hands of those responsible for Formula 1. "We would love it if we could share the calendar with Barcelona," admitted the head of Ifema, although the possibility of both appointments coming together seems unfeasible. The Madrid Grand Prix, which still has a few years to go, would be the only one on Spanish soil and would leave 450 million euros a year in the Spanish capital.

Because Domenicali and his team have the details of the project, the impact it would have and its economic viability. And it has the drawing of a route yet to be executed, but that would pass very close to that pavilion where the great exhibition of the history of Formula 1 has been inaugurated, refined after 80 interviews and which has 350 symbolic objects of the history of the competition, such as Grosjean's charred car. after that Bahrain accident in 2020.

Although one thing has nothing to do with the other, since the project of this exhibition started before the pandemic, the connection with that future appointment is now inevitable. And, as seen at the premiere of The Exhibition, no one hides it anymore.

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  • Articles Carlos Guisasola