Monza chiefs give update on F1 future

Italian Grand Prix boss Angelo Sticchi Damiani says a new Formula 1 race deal for the historic Monza circuit is still "far away". Monza is among the 16 circuits that is threatening to quit the sport over a dispute with Liberty Media.

It is particularly relevant for the Italian GP host, as its existing Liberty deal is expiring this year.

"A renewal is far away but we are confident that a solution can be found in everyone's interests," Sticchi Damiani, boss of the automobile club ACI, told Corriere della Sera.

"As Monza is keen to host F1, so too is it important for F1 to have Monza."

Sticchi Damiani admitted that the main problem is the amount of money being demanded by Liberty.

"For the 2019 edition we will pay $24 million -- a very high price," he said.

"We want to continue, but only in an economically sustainable framework. We cannot put the ACI's budgets at risk."

The similarly historic Silverstone circuit also has huge uncertainty hanging over its F1 future as it enters the final year of its agreement with F1.

Bosses at the home of the British Grand Prix prompted the current dispute with Liberty Media, with Silverstone boss Stuart Pringle claiming: "Everyone is disgruntled. Liberty's ideas are disjointed.

"We have great concerns about the future health of the sport under the people who run it now."

Concerns have been raised over new circuits, like Liberty's pet project in Miami, receiving favourable hosting deals that are seemingly not available to the sport's most historic and traditional venues.

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