Ecclestone unsure about London GP funding - MotorSportsTalk

Bernie Ecclestone is unsure whether or not a grand prix in the centre of London is going to happen in the future, but was pleased with yesterday’s news concerning a possible event.

UK Prime Minister David Cameron confirmed yesterday that new parliament legislation would allow more road racing to take place, opening up the possibility of a London Grand Prix that would incorporate landmarks such as Trafalgar Square and Buckingham Palace.

Despite being a supporter of the event, Ecclestone made no secret of his concerns when speaking to Press Association.

“It just depends on what we can come up with commercially because how are we going to fund it?” he questioned.

“The news is good, but I don’t know whether you’d have street racing because it’s not cheap to put on something that’s safe. Street racing is expensive.

“But if they ever get it together then we’ll see what happens. At least it’s a good sign, a step in the right direction.”

Most grands prix are funded either by private investors or the nation’s government. The Singapore Grand Prix has been a huge success for the country’s tourist industry, and it might be possible for the British government to get involved and reap the rewards of its capital hosting a grand prix. With two major airports and great travel links, it could bring hundreds of thousands of fans to the city for the race weekend.

However, as Ecclestone said, there is a very long way to go before the race could go ahead. Nevertheless, it is certainly a lucrative and interesting proposition for the sport and the city of London.

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An IndyCar executive said there is “absolutely” disappointment that its long-awaited video game recently was delayed beyond its target date, but the series remains optimistic about the new title.

“Well, I don’t know how quick it will be, but the whole situation is important to us,” Penske Entertainment president and CEO Mark Miles said during a news conference Monday morning to announce IndyCar’s NTT title sponsorship. “Motorsport Games has spent a lot of money, a lot of effort to create an IndyCar title. What we’ve seen of that effort, which is not completely obvious, is very reassuring.

“I think it’s going to be outstanding. That’s our shared objective, that when it is released, it’s just widely accepted. A great credit both to IndyCar racing, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, something that our fans love.”

In June 2021, IndyCar announced a new partnership with Motorsport Games to create and distribute an IndyCar video game for the PC and Xbox and PlayStation consoles in 2023.

But during an earnings call last week, Motorsport Games said the IndyCar game had been delayed to 2024 to ensure high quality.

Somewhat compounding the delay is that IndyCar’s license for iRacing expired after the end of the 2022 season because of its exclusive agreement with Motorsport Games.

That’s resulted in significant changes for IndyCar on iRacing, which had provided a high-profile way for the series to stay visible during its 2020 shutdown from the pandemic. (Players still can race an unbranded car but don’t race on current IndyCar tracks, nor can they stream).

That’s helped ratchet up the attention on having a video game outlet for IndyCar.

“I wish we had an IndyCar title 10 years ago,” said Miles, who has been working with the organization since 2013. “We’ve been close, but we’ve had these I think speed bumps.”

IndyCar is hopeful the Motorsports Game edition will be ready at the start of 2024. Miles hinted that beta versions could be unveiled to reporters ahead of the time “to begin to show the progress in a narrow way to make sure we’ve got it right, to test the progress so that we’re ready when they’re ready.”

It’s been nearly 18 years since the release of the most recent IndyCar video game for console or PC.

“(We) better get it right,” Miles said. “It’s something we’re very close to and continue to think about what it is to make sure we get it over the line in due course.”