By Carlo Platella
“It is no longer possible to live off the income.” This is how ACI President Angelo Sticchi Damiani sums up the discussions for the renewal of Monza in Formula 1. There has been talk for some time of the need to renovate one of the oldest racetracks in Europe, with the first works carried out this year involving the safety of the underpasses and the resurfacing of the track. However, ACI plans much more, with the creation of new stands conceived as microcosms to justify watching the race on the circuit instead of at home. First of all, it is necessary to untie some knots that go beyond the economic aspect, as Sticchi Damiani illustrates exclusively to FormulaPassion.
New works for the renewal
“In a year the contract that binds us to Formula 1 will expire and we are already discussing the renewal, at a time when the racetrack is evolving”, explains the president of the ACI. “We started this year with the track and underpasses, but the work continuesbeing very important and strategic for Formula 1 not only because they will improve the quality of the offer, but above all because they will allow them to have more space for the Paddock Club, which is very important for their business”.
It is a Formula 1 that no longer cares about the economic value linked to the contract alone, but also about the revenues that can be generated by the event itself, in particular from the capacity of the Paddock Club to accommodate the wealthiest guests: “It is not a mere economic discussion and what could be the so-called annual rate of increase of the percentage, but something much more complex that concerns the quantity and quality of the spaces that we hope to give to Formula 1 as soon as possible. An essential element of the contract are the works that have not yet been completed. To renew the contract we must be sure that we can do these jobs within a certain time frame. The sooner we do them, the more convenient the contract renewal will be, being able to offer added values on the negotiating table”.
The new Monza
Angelo Sticchi Damiani then goes on to illustrate the project for the renewal of the Autodromo: “Everything we do will be removable. Our intention is to demolish permanent reinforced concrete structures and replace them with removable ones. […] Having the resources, once authorized the works will have a more or less pre-established duration, but with the certainty that at the end of the process we will have a totally different racetrack. We will replace the current grandstands with removable ones with hospitality areas underneath the steps where it will be possible to eat and spend time. The grandstands will be microcosms where those who buy tickets will be able to pleasantly spend an entire day in which, in addition to the action on the track, they will enjoy many other reasons to justify the fact of not watching the Grand Prix from the comfort of their own home, but experiencing the atmosphere with all the possible comforts”.
The ACI president talks about new spaces to be made available to the Paddock Club, redistributing the existing ones: “Nothing will be sacrificed, on the contrary it will be rationalized. The idea is to replace the press room, which is perhaps excessively large, in a position where you can also see the circuit, which we don’t find anywhere else, working now with monitors. So that is a decidedly underused space. We would like to make a new press roommuch more rational, with more adequate spaces and above all with monitors without a view of the track. We also accidentally discovered that under that press room there are already some steps, which were then covered with industrial flooring. But all we have to do is remove it to have another grandstand”. Major works, which will take more than 12 months to complete: “We won’t do all this in a year. We will give priority to the most urgent things and then to the others, but we have to go and renew all this.”
Resources available
Before proceeding with the work, some knots must be untied. However, the economic aspect is not an obstacle: “The government has already made significant resources available to us, which we are using in the most correct way possible. Of course, we will still need funding, which is only necessary to cover the increase in prices that has occurred from 2019 to today, with a 40% increase in construction costs. Our business plan is for 2018-2019. What we have available is enough to cover what was in the business and other things. We are simply asking for an adjustment to the higher cost of the works”.
“On other occasions we have spoken about what this Grand Prix actually produces on the territory, with positive effects on the economic spin-off, on the media return and more. I would like there to be a collective awareness that in these years we have done a great job, committing resources of the Automobile Club of Italy. When we talk about public resources, confusion is created. The functioning of the State and the Region are very important, but the money that the ACI put in was ours, taken from our coffers by giving up other investments to fully do our duty as a sports federation. At this moment we are the most important automobile federation in the worldwith the highest number of world titles. These are clear signs that ACI, by investing its own resources, has taken responsibility for what was prejudicial to the continuation of the history of this Italian Grand Prix”.
The knot
The success or failure of the short-term renovation of the Autodromo, and hence the renewal of the contract with Formula 1, will depend on the speed of approval of the works by the relevant bodies: “There will be a phase for obtaining the authorization which will have to be as short as possible, obviously compatible with all the regulations. The yes can come in 20 days or in 3 months. To date, the authorizations are the only knot to be untied, having the resources and the economic coverage for the work we need to do. It is only the authorization to block the works”. Sticchi Damiani underlines how the authorizations represent the main issue at the moment, putting in second place the duration and figures of the renewal with Formula 1: “These aspects are important, but they come after having overcome this stalemate. The factors external to price and duration are too important, because they are prejudicial. We must untie these knots”.
Modernity beyond history
The ACI president reveals how a realistic goal for Monza is another five-year renewal: “Honestly, a decade is a lot. Five could be a middle solutioncould be a good target.” The ambition is to use the next five years to complete the transformation of the Autodromo, making it an example in Europe and in the world: “For seven years we have lived in the wake of the past and history. This is the first year in which we have put on the table completed works, which if we had not done I do not know how it would have ended.”
“It was said that you can’t have a world championship without Monza, but the same was said about Germany and France, where the FIA is based. We we are not exploiting a positional rentbut we try to enhance those elements that certainly help: name, history, tradition and uniqueness. But this was not enough and is not enough. We need to make a common effort to respect commitments and secure the Grand Prix for at least another five years. Then we will have time to think about how many other things can come as a consequence”.
“The final goal is not the contract, which is a means to continue in the Formula 1 championship. The ultimate goal is to have an Autodromo that is the best as regards the quality of the service offered, which enjoys an extraordinary tradition and image and which I hope can become a fixed point of the World Cup, not for the name, but as the most beautiful facility there is”.
Monza like Le Mans
On other occasions Angelo Sticchi Damiani had spoken of the suggestion of recovering the old banked curves, a dream that continues to hover in the thoughts of the president of the ACI: “This comes right after. We don’t have the financial resources to do it, we will try to get them, maybe with other forms of financing. The flyovers are a form of industrial archaeology that must be recovered. They are another element of great attraction, as a piece of history in a historic racetrack. When they decided to demolish them I said that I would stand in front of the bulldozers to preserve them and we succeeded”.
All this outlines a vision in which history is not the only tool to stay on the calendar, but an enhancing element to be combined with modernity to propose an iconic event in the international motoring panorama. The example is that of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, which has become a model for all. Sticchi Damiani concludes: “All this had to be valued. We went forward on the wave of history, taking many things for granted. Now, however, thanks also to a careful Formula 1 policy, it is no longer possible to live off the proceeds. It is essential that this becomes a modelas Le Mans has become for endurance racing. Just look at what they have done in these years, creating wealth. It was already a unique event in the world, but I came back this year after ten years and it is incredible what they have done. This is what we have to do”.
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