Later this month, F1 will host a race with no fans allowed entry to the race track
The coronavirus has the world concerned.
This week, the Italian government placed a lockdown on the northern part of the country. 16 million people are in lockdown to prevent spread of Covid-19.
Global cases of the virus have hit 105,000 as of today.
Cruise ships are being held under quarantine. 50 miles from the coast of California, ship passengers are being tested.
“We have a perfectly coordinated and fine tuned plan at the White House for our attack on CoronaVirus. We moved VERY early to close borders to certain areas, which was a Godsend. V.P. is doing a great job,” U.S. president Donald Trump said. “The Fake News Media is doing everything possible to make us look bad. Sad!”
Bahrain Grand Prix to be hosted without fans
Meanwhile, Bahrain has 60 reported cases of the virus. Event organizers are taking a proactive approuch to preventing spread within the paddock of the world championship racing teams.
Event organizers issued the following statement:
“In consultation with our international partners and the Kingdom’s national health taskforce, Bahrain has made the decision to hold this year’s Bahrain Grand Prix as a participants-only event.”
“As an F1 host nation, balancing the welfare of supporters and racegoers is a tremendous responsibility. Given the continued spread of Covid-19 globally, convening a major sporting event which is open to the public and allows thousands of international travelers and local fans to interact in close proximity would not be the right thing to do at the present time.”
“But to ensure that neither the sport, nor its global supporter base, is unduly impacted, the race weekend itself will still go ahead as a televised event.”
“Bahrain’s own early actions to prevent, identify and isolate cases of individuals with Covid-19 has been extremely successful to date.”
“The approach has involved rapid, proactive measures, identifying those affected by the virus, of which the overwhelming majority of cases relate to those travelling into the country by air.”
This is the second F1 event to be altered due to the virus. Last month, F1 indefinitely postponed the Chinese Grand Prix which was scheduled to take place in Shanghai come April.
Italian race teams monitoring the coronavirus
Italy has a strong presence in the traveling paddock. The death toll from the virus is at 233 in Italy alone.
Ferrari issued a statement regarding the virus:
“Following measures announced by the Italian Government last night, we are monitoring and evaluating the situation and are in close contact with the relevant authorities and all organisations involved,” a team statement read.
“For Ferrari, compliance with the Government regulations represents the primary guarantee for ensuring the safety of its employees and their families which is our priority. Every single decision will be made with respect to this principle.
“Part of the team and equipment have already arrived in Melbourne and the departures for the remaining members of the team are going ahead as programmed unless we receive communications to the contrary.”
