A Grand Prix in Rome is a fantastic idea, Renault boss Falvio Briatore said Monday.
Speaking on Italian radio, Briatore said a planned new race around the historic EUR district would be ''spectacular, like all city circuits''.
But he suggested that such an event could only be a one-off, because Italy could not afford to put on two grands prix.
''The idea of a Rome GP is fantastic. From the television standpoint, it would be really spectacular. But it would mean sacrificing the (Italian Grand Prix at) Monza. If it does happen, I think it can only be a one-off,'' said Briatore, the flamboyant Italian who has achieved success at Benetton and Renault.
''If it were up to me, I'd vote for two grands prix in Italy. But two races in Italy would be very difficult to support''.
A Rome investment group has set up a company to organise a Grand Prix in the capital in three years and local officials have thrown their weight behind the bid.
The city is ''serious'' about the project, Mayor Gianni Alemanno said on Thursday.
''We are having serious talks,'' he said.
But he acknowledged that it would not be easy to set up the event given the technical difficulties and opposition in many quarters.
''The negotiations are complicated, almost as complicated as organising an Olympic Games,'' he told journalists, without going into details.
The group of Italian investors and racing enthusiasts, FG Group, was formally set up on January 29 with a view to bringing F1 to Rome in 2012.
FG has already met with Hermann Tilke, considered the world's greatest designer of new-generation race tracks.
According to the media, the group plans to rival the historic Monaco Grand Prix.
F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone has boosted Rome's hopes by backing the idea but Max Mosley, head of motor racing's ruling body FIA, was cool about the plan.
FG chief Maurizio Flammini, a Rome businessman who already organises the world Superbike championship, is insistent that the event should not be a one-off but should run ''for at least four years''.
He stressed that the race would have ''a format different from all the other events'' and would create thousands of jobs for Rome.
FERRARI BOSS ONLY WANTS ONE-OFF.
Ferrari boss Luca Cordero di Montezemolo has said a permanent race would be ''unthinkable'' but a one-off event might be open to discussion.
He believes Rome has ''other priorities'' to meet before organising such an event.
But if it did get the green light, ''it could only be a one-off, showcase event''.
''If this can be done at zero cost and can produce turnover, then fine,'' he added.
According to the Ferrari chief, who is also Fiat's chairman, Rome does not need a Grand Prix to promote its image.
Montezemolo is head of the Formula One Teams Association (FOTA) which was created last season to give constructors a single voice in negotiating the future of the sport with FIA and Ecclestone's Formula One Group (FOG).
FG plans to stage the GP in the Mussolini-era Roman district of EUR.
Enthusiasts point out that overtaking would be possible there unlike other new street circuits like Valencia and Singapore.
The group has assured Monza executives its plan would not threaten the Italian GP, one of the longest-running events on the motor racing calendar.
It was first run in 1921.
The idea of staging a Grand Prix in Rome was first aired in the mid-1980s by the great Enzo Ferrari.
