Ferrari could gain an upper hand on their rivals after revealing plans to test at Mugello on June 23.
The Scuderia, who owns the Tuscan track, will use the day to practice the new operational procedures Formula 1 has adopted against the coronavirus.
At the same time, however, it will also give Charles Leclerc and Sebastian Vettel some useful running time in modern machinery on a circuit that is widely expected to host a race in September.
By contrast, if the GP did go ahead, the other teams would have very little knowledge with which to prepare as the last F1 running at Mugello took place in 2012.
It was also noted that the traditional Italian MotoGP venue shares a lot of characteristics with the Red Bull Ring, where the 2020 season will begin next month.
In order to avoid the 100km distance limit that would have applied by using the current SF1000, Ferrari will instead run their 2018 car to allow more freedom with their test program.
This comes after several other teams, including Mercedes, also opted to use a two-year-old machine to conduct some pre-season running.
At this point, only Racing Point has run their 2020 car, with Lance Stroll conducting a filming day at Silverstone this week.
As for Mugello’s chances of hosting a first F1 race this year, it was hinted by ACI president Angelo Sticchi Damiani that an announcement could come as soon as this weekend following the FIA World Motor Sport Council meeting on Friday.
Meanwhile, Florence mayor Dario Nardella is quoted by The Race as saying a second Italian race this year is “practically certain”, adding “we have never come so close to the possibility of having F1″.
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