Formula One bosses have arranged talks with Rwandan officials next month as the African country looks to push ahead with plans to host a grand prix.
As F1 considers expanding its calendar to capitalise on the championship’s surge in interest around the world, it is clear that hosting a race on the African continent is a key objective.
While several countries in the region have expressed a desire to host F1 races, it appears that Rwanda’s plans are far enough along to be discussed seriously.
In an exclusive interview with Motorsport.com, F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali said a meeting has been arranged with Rwanda to discuss the project, which he said is promising.
“They are serious,” Domenicali said. “They have presented a good plan and we have a meeting with them at the end of September. It will be a permanent project.”
Rwanda has shown a growing interest in motor racing and this year representatives of the Rwanda Development Board travelled to the Monaco Grand Prix to meet with the FIA.
Sir Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes F1 W15, leads Lando Norris, McLaren MCL38, Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin AMR24, Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB20, and the rest of the field at the start of the Sprint
Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images
The East African country will also host this year’s FIA Annual General Assembly and Awards Ceremony in its capital Kigali in December.
Having achieved its goal of expansion in the United States and satisfied with three races held in Miami, Austin and Las Vegas, F1 is now evaluating where to focus its efforts in the rest of the world.
Domenicali said Africa, which has not hosted an F1 race since the 1993 South African Grand Prix, was an element that was being seriously evaluated.
“We want to go to Africa, but we need to have the right investment and the right strategic plan,” Domenicali said.
“We have to find the right moment and we have to make sure that also in that country, in that region, in that continent, there is the right welcome, because, obviously, they have other priorities. We must always be very careful to make the right choices.”
Domenicali said that F1 is now at a stage where there is enough interest around the world to choose the best possible calendar.
“Until 2020 we were in a situation where the number of venues that wanted to host F1 was not that high. Therefore we were not able to exert what I would call constructive pressure to grow what we can offer to our customers and our fans.”
Srettha Thavisin, Prime Minister of Thailand, Stefano Domenicali, CEO, Formula One Group
Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images
“Now we’re at the exact opposite end. We have so many places around the world that want to host F1 that allows us to make sure we work with all of them to grow the experience.”
“With 24 races, I see that there is a number that will be stable, and we can really fine-tune the ones that we are discussing to see what the medium-term future looks like.”
“I don’t see any big changes in the short term, but in the next couple of months we will have to discuss what ’26, ’27 and ’28 will be. We have several options, but we are in a moment of crisis. We have several options, but we are in a good position.”
Another likely novelty in the calendar for the next few years is the Thai Grand Prix, for which the country’s government is pushing hard.
Domenicali said he plans to travel to the country after this year’s Singapore Grand Prix to assess the latest developments on the project, which was originally intended to be a street race around Bangkok but could now be something different.
He added: “With Bangkok, we have several options on the table. After Singapore I will be in Bangkok to look into the issue.”
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