Austria GP without spectators 'conceivable' – minister

Apr.14 (GMM) Austria and Red Bull could be set to throw a lifeline to F1’s endangered 2020 season.

Red Bull – the owner of the Red Bull Ring – has said it wants to proceed with its scheduled July race, even though surrounding events France and Britain now look set to be postponed.

Even politically, Red Bull’s idea of two races at the Spielberg venue could work.

“Apart from the fact that I am not responsible for that, it is conceivable to me,” sports minister Werner Kogler told Kleine Zeitung newspaper.

“If the Formula 1 teams can be ready, it would be a possibility,” he added, suggesting that certain quarantine measures would need to be in place.

It appears that spectators would definitely be excluded, which is something Dutch GP boss Jan Lammers is not open to for a rescheduled Zandvoort race.

“We will not think about the option of holding a race without spectators until the FIA asks us,” he told nu.nl.

Former driver Christian Danner, however, is hopeful that at least Red Bull’s plan for the Austrian GP works out.

“It is a very ambitious push by the Austrians, with a committed promoter in Red Bull. I would be happy if it works out,” he told RTL.

“To what extent it can be integrated with the legal situation, I can’t predict.”