Formula 1 CEO Chase Carey says the early publication of next year’s calendar will assist promoters in achieving Liberty Media’s goal of improving the experience for fans at events.
Carey, installed as CEO in the wake of Liberty’s acquisition of Formula 1 in January, has repeatedly spoken of enhancing the experience for spectators, particularly in terms of off-track activities.
New initiatives, driven by Liberty, were introduced at the Spanish Grand Prix, with increased fan activities, as well as post-qualifying driver interviews in front of grandstands.
Under previous ownership, the FIA’s World Motor Sport Council regularly issued draft calendars, with the finalised 2017 schedule only released at the end of last November.
The 2018 calendar, which features 21 races – of which only two are subject to agreements with the Commercial Rights Holder – was distributed on Monday, following the meeting of the WMSC in Geneva.
Carey says that the relatively early publication of the 2018 calendar will boost Grand Prix promoters in planning for next year's events.
“I think we want to give our promoters and our events time to plan and make these events,” Carey explained at the FIA Sport Conference.
“We’ve talked about the importance of making these events bigger, broader and more engaging, engaging the city, involving multiple dimensions [such as] music, food, exhibitions.
“Those things require planning, we want those events to be marketed properly [and] sold properly.
“And to do all those things well we think it’s important promoters have enough time to plan and put all the things in motion they need to do.”
Next year’s calendar will equal 2016’s record of 21 events, with France and Germany returning at Paul Ricard and Hockenheim respectively, and Malaysia dropped.
