Hamilton: Formula 1 can't 'turn its back' on Silverstone

Silverstone has yet to secure its future with F1 beyond this year, but Lewis Hamilton insists the sport can't turn its back on the legendary track's legacy.

F1 CEO Chase Carey recently expressed his confidence that the British Grand Prix will remain on Grand Prix racing's schedule in 2020.

However, talks between the BRDC - Silverstone's owner - and Liberty Media have proven to be a laborious process during which the former has sought a financially viable deal while the latter has conceded as little ground as possible.

Hopefully for British F1 fans, the two parties have met halfway, with a new agreement just around the corner.

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Hamilton insists Silverstone's historical status can't be ignored by F1's commercial rights holder.

"There are some really awesome circuits and Silverstone is one of those," Hamilton said.

“The UK is really amongst the foundation of what this sport is and if you start taking away the legendary races and it’s all just new ones, you lose all the history and all the culture which is what Formula 1 is.

"So I truly believe they have to keep Formula 1 in the UK and particularly Silverstone, it’s such an awesome track, such an awesome place. One of the biggest turnouts of all season. You can’t turn your back on that.

"Wouldn't be bad to have two races in UK," he added. "Because I think London would be awesome for the country and tourism and all that kind of stuff, such a big noise and event in the world but I don’t know if it will happen.

"As long as we have one of them. We have all these great tracks in the UK. Don’t know who designed them all but did a really good job."

Liberty Media's ambition is to take Formula 1 to new territories and markets. While Hamilton welcomes a global expansion of the sport, the five-time world champion insists new venues must offer the promise of good racing.

"Liberty are doing a good job in terms of bringing other places into the sport," the Mercedes driver added.

"You’ve just got to be careful though that when you choose tracks you choose places with a great fan base, and yes we’ve got to create new fan bases in places, but also got to find a track that’s going to deliver exciting races.

"Sometimes I can already tell you how bad the race is going to be, in some of the places they have decided to bring on.

"Great places and a big fan base there but the race isn’t going to be great - not going to say where that is but you will see next year."

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.