Jul.7 (GMM) In more ways than one, there is a big cloud over this weekend’s British grand prix.
On Friday, those en route to Silverstone queued for hours in traffic jams, missing the practice sessions and then either being turned away from the quagmire carparks or invited into the circuit to watch very little on-track action.
“Fortunately, I bought plenty of reading material,” said the New York Times correspondent Brad Spurgeon.
“But I pity the spectators who paid to go through that and then witness nothing but drivers sitting around while it rained.”
It looks set to get worse. Race organisers have admitted the weather is playing havoc with their plans and are urging 30,000 spectators with general admission tickets to stay away on Saturday.
Track boss Richard Phillips issued an “unreserved apology” to those affected, insisting he is “so sick I could cry”.
Not only that, Jenson Button said that if the weather stays the same, Sunday’s grand prix might be called off.
“I can’t see us being allowed to race in these conditions,” he said on Friday, when some of the limited track action involved Bruno Senna and Fernando Alonso aquaplaning into the barriers.
Lewis Hamilton said it “looks like there is no drainage” in crucial sections of the high-speed layout.
The weather even prevented F1 chief executive Bernie Ecclestone’s helicopter from flying in.
“If it’s like this on Sunday, visibility would be zero. We would spend half or the whole race behind the safety car,” Marussia’s Timo Glock told Bild newspaper.
