CANADIAN GP bosses are expected to announce this week that their F1 race will be postponed.
The race in Montreal is currently the next on the depleted calendar that has been wrecked by the coronavirus pandemic.
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The Gilles Villeneuve circuit in Montreal seems certain to be the ninth venue in a row to miss out as doubt remains over the F1 seasonCredit: Getty Images – Getty
World champ Lewis Hamilton was a controversial winner last time over Sebastian Vettel but coronavirus means a re-run is unlikelyCredit: EPA
Sebastian Vettel, seen leading in Montreal last year, was denied victory as a five-second penalty handed Lewis Hamilton top placeCredit: Getty Images – Getty
F1 chiefs have cancelled or postponed all eight races this season and now Canada is expected to become number nine.
The race is due to go ahead on June 14th but with the country still on lockdown, it seems unlikely it will get the all clear to race.
Two music festivals in the city have already been scrapped and Canadian racing driver, Patrick Carpentier, thinks the race will also be cancelled as travel restrictions on teams, including Ferrari, will prevent them from flying to Montreal.
He said: “Ferrari is an important part of F1, so if they cancelled Melbourne because McLaren was affected by the coronavirus, they will not come to Montreal because Ferrari will not be there.
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“Right now, it would be very, very, very frowned upon for Ferrari to go racing while nearly 1000 people die there every day.
“I hope that the race will happen, but in my opinion it is impossible.”
Meanwhile, Mario Isola, the boss of Pirelli F1’s division, is moving to the frontline of the fight against Covid-19 – taking up his role as volunteer paramedic in the European epicentre of the coronavirus.
With Vietnam’s inaugural F1 race this weekend cancelled, he will help critically ill patients near his home in Milan.
Despite girlfriend Isabella begging him not to volunteer, the 50-year-old says it’s his duty.
Coronavirus has killed over 7,500 people in Lombardy.
And as isola comes out of self-imposed isolation, he said: “As paramedics, we know we sometimes have to take risks.
“You do it because you have to do it. I am having some discussions with my girlfriend, who is not very happy about it.”
Lewis Hamilton urges people to wash their hands to avoid catching contagious coronavirus
Source: Motorsport - thesun.co.uk
