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Monza set to be saved by new legislation

The future of the Italian Grand Prix at Monza is set to be saved by a new legislation which will allow increased funding for the race.

2016 will be the last race of the current contract at Monza, with Bernie Ecclestone having suggested it could fall off the calendar as he was struggling to agree a new deal with the race organisers. Increased race hosting fees were central to the issue, with Monza unable to afford the larger amounts.

Part of the problem were restrictions on how the Automobile Club d'Italia (ACI) could spend its resources, but a report in La Gazzetta dello Sport now states the Italian government is set to approve the removal of the limitations in order to save the race.

Italian prime minister Matteo Renzi was present for talks with Ecclestone during this year's Italian Grand Prix, and president of the ACI Angelo Sticchi Damiani says it proved to be a crucial move.

“This statute prevented us from intervening to save Monza," Sticchi Damiani told La Gazzetta dello Sport. "We had problems distinguishing income from sport and other activities. This change has been decisive and so the most important work is now done.

“At this point, it has to be approved by parliament, which should be done before Christmas. I have to say that it was important to have Matteo Renzi at the Grand Prix.”

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.