Storm-damaged grandstands at the city's Formula One racetrack may not be fixed before the Chinese Grand Prix in October, Shanghai International Circuit Company admitted yesterday.

Despite saying on Sunday that the repair work would be finished by Wednesday, yesterday the company admitted that it may not be finished this year, Youth Daily reported yesterday.

"We may not repair the damaged stands this year as dismantling the seats, clearing debris and rebuilding work all require time," Wang Ying, deputy general manager of Shanghai Circuit, told the newspaper. "Even if we finish before the Chinese Grand Prix, we may still be short of time to carry out safety tests on the repair work."

Shanghai Circuit is responsible for the track and stands. The company said yesterday it would offer seats in other areas of the track to spectators who bought tickets for the F1 race in the four damaged grandstands, Youth Daily said, citing Wang.

The three-day F1 Chinese Grand Prix will start on October 5.

Wang assured fans that delays in repair work will not affect the race and the company wouldn't raise ticket prices.

The company yesterday denied it used light-weight alloys not tough enough to withstand strong winds when building the stands.

Friday's storm blew sections of the grandstands and guard rails some 20 meters from their place in Jiading District.

The grandstands were linked. Once one began to collapse, the others followed, according to circuit security guards.

No one was injured and the base sections of the grandstands remain intact.

A one-story house in Jiading was also blown down during Friday's storm, in which wind speeds reached 134 to 149 kilometers per hour. No one was injured.