General, sporting, and business news for Malta and the surrounding region http://www.timesofmalta.com/ http://www.timesofmalta.com/img/tom_new_logo_small.png http://www.timesofmalta.com/ en Tue, 18 Jun 2013 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20130619/f1/Montreal-mulling-10-year-contract-extension-to-2024.474497

Canadian Grand Prix organisers say they are discussing a 10-year contract extension as Formula One seeks long-term deals with key races ahead of a possible flotation of the series. Francois Dumontier, promoter of the race in Montreal, told the espn.co.uk website that an extension to 2024 was on the table. He said that was the longest agreement ever proposed to Canadian organisers, with previous deals being for five years with options. “All new agreements now being signed are for 10 years,” he added, saying that there were several reasons for that. “I believe they want to consolidate the good grands prix. Montreal is such a race, undoubtedly. “We saw as much (this year) with the full grandstands and the comments made by the drivers and teams. “F1 has a project to enter the stock market. Ten-year contracts have a certain value when entering the stock market,” he added. Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone said in April that the company behind the sport could be floated in Singapore at the end of this year if markets remained benign. Plans to raise up to $3 billion by listing the business were pulled last year amid market turmoil following the flotation of social network Facebook,... ]]> Wed, 19 Jun 2013 00:01:00 +0200 http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20130619/f1/Montreal-mulling-10-year-contract-extension-to-2024.474497