Preparations are underway as the Circuit of the Americas gears up for the possibility of hosting back-to-back Formula 1 events later this year.
The official website for the venue, the home of the US Grand Prix, is receiving expressions of interest from fans for a second event, called the “Texas Grand Prix”.
It has long been claimed that F1 could host a variety of events at its Austin headquarters as the sport adapts to the ever-changing global landscape.
In the current calendar, the US Grand Prix is part of a triple title with the Grand Prix of Mexico City and Sao Paulo.
However, serious doubts remain about both, as the epidemic maintains strong control especially over the latter.
As of August 2, Mexico has reported an average of 16,777 new cases, for a total of 2,854,992, according to Johns Hopkins University’s Center for Systems Science and Engineering.
More specifically, Mexico City averages 3,843 new cases per day.
However, 20 percent of the population has been fully vaccinated and 37 percent have received at least one dose according to Oxford University’s Our World in Data project.
In Brazil, 35,120 new cases were reported on Monday, for a total of 1,953,501.
However, the most worrying thing is that 960 deaths have been recorded, while Mexico has recorded 407 deaths.
Again, 20% of the population was vaccinated and 50% received at least one needle prick.
Brazil is also a member of the UK’s “red zone”, which means UK residents must be quarantined for 10 days after their return.
Walking around the Interlagos would avoid that headache entirely, and so it makes sense to host two events in the US, followed by one in Mexico.
There are still concerns about the Japanese Grand Prix as well, although the numbers are much lower – an average of 93,838 cases on August 2, with 20 deaths.
The vaccination rate means that 29 percent of the population has been fully vaccinated and 40 percent have received at least one dose.
Japan is currently hosting the Tokyo Olympics, although most of this competition is located about 400 kilometers from the Suzuka Circuit.
The man in charge of the US Grand Prix, Bobby Epstein, was at Hungarroring last weekend.
The backend of the F1 calendar already features an event to be confirmed, which will be held in Lusail as an alternative to the archived Australian Grand Prix.
A change to the last two races of the year has also been proposed, as the UAE is also on the UK’s “red zone” list.
When visiting Yas Marina first and then finishing off the season in Saudi Arabia, you will see those in the UK serving most of the quarantine period required at the event in Jeddah.
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