New Nurburgring boss ’positive’ about future

The new boss of the Nurburgring has expressed confidence about the famous venue staying on the calendar beyond 2011.

The new coalition Rhineland-Palatinate government has announced that state funding will end after Sunday’s race.

Track operator Jorg Lindner said this week that the Nurburgring’s future therefore depends on a new contract with Bernie Ecclestone featuring "economically and politically acceptable conditions".

A new arrival to the Nurburgring management team is Karl-Josef Schmidt, who according to Bild newspaper successfully negotiated a lower race fee and ticket-revenue sharing deal whilst in charge of Hockenheim, Germany’s other F1 venue.

As for the Nurburgring’s current situation, Schmidt said: "This is the last race of the old contract. We are in negotiations and it looks positive."