Zandvoort, only candidate for a return of F1 to the Netherlands

For several months, the historic circuit traced in the dunes bordering the North Sea had been competing with the Assen track to bring back the Formula 1 in the homeland of Max Verstappen and his cohorts of admirers.

The Dutch sports council published an open letter this Monday in which its president Michael van Praag takes stock of the situation and details the financing plans for the two projects after speaking with representatives of Assen and Zandvoort.

It emerges that the first named, who already welcomes the MotoGP and DTM, has a completed business plan, partly thanks to the presence “ from a foreign investor willing to cover the fees » claimed by Liberty Media.

Zandvoort, for his part, signed a letter of intent with the FOM on December 13, 2018 and hoped to obtain public subsidies which ultimately did not materialize. The government made this known last month even though it is committed to facilitating the organization of the event by granting the necessary infrastructure and security authorizations.

The Dutch sports council also explains that potential supporters of the Zandvoort project are increasingly worried about direct competition with Assen. Michael van Praag declares that he is not in a position to judge the quality of the two files but affirms that Zandvoort is the only viable candidate in the eyes of the FOM, because " its history and proximity to airports and major cities (the route is less than an hour from Amsterdam, Editor’s note).”

The Zandvoort envoys, whose circuit currently only has FIA Grade 2, have until March 31, 2019 to present their final project to Liberty.