Oct.2 (GMM) 1996 world champion Damon Hill has indicated he is not keen on Silverstone stepping in next year as simply a temporary replacement for contracted new British grand prix venue Donington.
Donington's struggle to raise the funding for its necessary track revamp is well known, and F1 chief executive Bernie Ecclestone has indicated that Silverstone would step in if the Leicestershire circuit is not ready for July next year.But if Donington's plans do fall through, Hill - president of Silverstone's track-owning British Racing Drivers' Club (BRDC) - has told the Guardian newspaper that Ecclestone should secure a new long-term future for the race."If Donington does not happen, then you have to ask yourself what that says about the decision to look into it in the first place," he said."And in those circumstances it would be nice to think that we could get round a table with FOM and put to bed once and for all the uncertainty over the future of the British grand prix," Hill added.Ecclestone said recently in Singapore that an extended deadline of October 3, Saturday, had been imposed on Donington's efforts to secure a bank guarantee for its circuit upgrade, but that there is still "no guarantee" the race would revert to Silverstone."If it's going to be Silverstone - and there's no guarantee it will be, if it's not Donington - they want to get on, get the race prepared, and sell tickets," he said.The report in the Guardian said Silverstone has "little interest" in hosting a race just for 2010 in order to give Donington more time to get its plans together.
