Emanuele Pirro, an Italian former F1 driver, hopes the coronavirus situation leads down the path of a "more viable and accessible Formula 1".

Nine races have already been either cancelled or postponed, and now Silverstone and Paul Ricard look set to follow.

"I see that Wimbledon, a week earlier than Silverstone, has already been cancelled," former driver Christian Danner told RTL.

And organisers of the French GP say "all scenarios", including postponement, are currently being studied.

"I suspect that we will have a start to the season later this year, and I very much hope it will happen not only for the fans but for the survival of the teams," said Danner.

Pirro, who contested 40 grands prix, thinks it might be possible.

"We can do grand prix weekends over two days rather than three and we don't need 1000 people behind the scenes," he told L'Equipe.

But he also thinks F1 should take the opportunity in other ways to improve the sport for the long term.

"We can have a Formula 1 without having to create a new car every year," said Pirro. "I also don't understand why they can no longer sell chassis to other teams, as in the past.

"Right now even the smallest teams have to create a new car that ends up in the rubbish at the end of each season. This situation could encourage us to move towards less dogmatic rules and a more viable and accessible Formula 1," he added.