The possibility of Rome holding a Grand Prix in the near future has irritated the current hosts of the Italian event, Monza. Superbike promoter Maurizio Flammini is reported to have recently presented plans for a street race in the city to Bernie Ecclestone, and this has been met with a heated response from the organisers of the Monza race.
According to news agency GMM, the mayor of Monza Marco Mariani accused Rome of trying to ‘steal’ the Italian Grand Prix from its historic home.
Enrico Gelip, President of the Automobile Club d’Italia (ACI), said that Monza was the ‘historic temple of speed and racing’ and extremely important to the sport.
Plans for a Rome street race are thought to be only at the proposal stage at the moment, and it is far from clear where the funding for such an event would come from. The proponents face more opposition from Monza plus the critics of street races, who would argue that in already visiting Monaco, Valencia and Singapore, the sport hosts enough of those events.
