F1 hopes to have fans back at races by autumn

All events in the initial eight-race European leg of the revised calendar announced yesterday will be held behind closed doors.

However, Carey hopes that when the series moves to flyaway races outside Europe there will be scope to allow spectators into venues.

"Fans are incredibly important," Carey said in a video interview conducted by F1. "In many ways we compete for fans. So we'd love to have fans at these events.

"But I think we recognise the safety requirements and the risks that still exist, and we have to take steps towards that.

"We'd like to have fans in all honesty as soon as we think we can do it in a safe way for everybody involved, the fans and all those involved in the sport.

"We've talked about goals to have fans at the races in the fall. It may not be back to stands that are packed to the rafters, but limited capacity fan events.

"So I think it is a goal to be able to be able to include fans. But it is a goal realistically to do it in a way when we believe we can do it safely for everybody."

Carey says that July will be the right time to restart the 2020 world championship, despite ongoing restrictions in many countries.

"We really have it seems to me a real desire from a large proportion of the world that wants to get back to life as we knew it.

"We want to do it safely, we want to do it in the right way. Certainly, we're not alone, other sports are beginning to compete, other societies are beginning to open.

"I follow it more as a layman, but certainly countries like Italy seem to be opening up with certain guidelines and restrictions. But much of the world is moving forward."