Jul.17 (GMM) “Stability” in a potential host country of an African GP is an important consideration, FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem insists.
Speaking with the Dutch publication Formule 1, Ben Sulayem was reminded that some time ago he expressed his preference that if Formula 1 completes its world championship by heading to Africa, his preference is Rwanda.
“No, not for Rwanda – for Africa,” the FIA boss insists.
“I still believe we need more teams and more races, it’s just that the drivers come to me and say ‘Please, no more races’. But Africa as a continent has always been somewhat forgotten.
“I’m proud that last year, for the first time in FIA history, we held the General Assembly in Rwanda.”
Funding aside, however, an issue for Rwanda is the political stability, as well as alleged human rights violations.
“Yes, you can go in that direction,” said Ben Sulayem when asked about that. “When you talk about the Middle East, we have four F1 races and it often comes down to human rights and sports washing.
“Fine, but we were at the Qatar Airways British GP earlier this month,” he smiled. “So it just doesn’t make sense. I’m a proponent of Africa.
“If we are considering a location in Africa, we’ll follow our normal procedure and carefully consider the financial side of things and financial stability. Then we’ll also certainly look carefully at whether there’s stability in other areas in the country in question.”
South Africa – specifically Kyalami – looks to be in a stronger position than Rwanda at present, with the FIA even promising to issue F1-ready Grade 1 status for the circuit pending upgrades.
South Africa’s sports minister Gayton McKenzie revealed in parliament this week that a key meeting with Formula 1 will take place within two weeks – with private sector backers also involved.
“Those who say the country cannot afford to host Formula 1, I say South Africa cannot afford not to,” he declared.
The minister pointed out that several existing Formula 1 race hosts are desperately trying to find ways to stay on the calendar.
“They see the value in it,” said McKenzie, “and it cannot be called a world championship if it misses an entire continent.”
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