Italian GP saved by exemption

Local residents had complained about noise levels on race days exceeding the legal limit and obtained a court order in November banning cars without silencers.

On Wednesday the regional council for Lombardy passed legislation allowing a 30-day exemption from the rules on sound emissions.

The 30 days will allow the Grand Prix and an Italian Formula 3000 race to take place at the venue which is based in a park in the Northern town.

Monza is Formula One's fastest circuit as well as one of the most historic - the track opened in 1922 and has hosted every Italian Grand Prix since 1950 with the exception of 1980 when the race moved to Imola.

Last November Judge Marco Manunta upheld a complaint by residents of Biassono who said their lives had been transformed into a living hell by the roar of engines at the circuit.

Gazzetta dello Sport newspaper quoted him at the time as saying motor racing was a "superfluous, dangerous and socially useless activity that had a major impact on the environment".

The circuit is co-owned by the municipalities of Monza and the nearby city of Milan.