BREAKING: Belgian GP to remain a part of F1 calendar in 2023 season

The F1 Belgian GP is going nowhere for the 2023 season! In a statement issued by the sport to the media ahead of Sunday’s race at Spa, it said:

“Formula 1 can confirm that the Belgian Grand Prix will be on the 2023 calendar following an agreement to extend our partnership together. Further details on the 2023 calendar will be announced in due course.”

Speaking to Sky Sports F1 after the announcement was made, Formula 1 President and CEO Stefano Domenicali said:

“We have to congratulate the job [the race organisers] did. You’ve seen the investment they did. You see the number of people that are coming here… Incredible crowd, incredible attention to the people, and this is great. Great I think for the sport. We always said that the race is a part of our tradition, and it has a very important space in our calendar, and this is a fact that we wanted to share in this moment.”

There were rumors that the race at Spa was in danger of being removed from the calendar for the 2023 F1 season. The calendar for next year is expected to have as many as 24 races. With new venues like Las Vegas getting added to the calendar, there were rumors about the future of the Belgian GP.

Jenson Button was very vocal in his support for the F1 Belgian GP

Jenson Button was one of the more vocal proponents of support for the F1 Belgian GP. Speaking about the possibility of Spa losing its spot on the calendar, Button had said:

“If Spa isn’t there I’ll be very upset. Monaco is a tricky one because there’s lots going on behind the scenes. But if you take away Spa, it’s for other reasons, not because it’s not a good circuit. It’s one of the best in the world, the racing’s amazing, the drivers love it and the teams love going there.”

Button cautioned that F1 was moving more and more towards the show element and that it needed to be careful. He’d said:

“We have to be a little bit careful. We know Formula 1 is entertainment and a certain TV show [Drive to Survive on Netflix] has made it very famous in America, which is great for the sport. But we need to make sure we keep the racing exciting and going to circuits that give us great racing because you’re going to see happy drivers.”

It’s safe to say that the former world champion would be happy to see the race continue to be a part of the sport for the next season.