SOUTH AFRICA’S hopes of returning to the F1 calendar have been dealt a blow because of the nation’s hyperlinks to Russia.
Bosses on the Kyalami circuit simply north of Johannesburg had hoped to take a spot on the 2024 calendar – probably rather than the Belgian GP, which is within the last yr of its contract.
Lewis Hamilton’s ‘dream’ of racing in South Africa has suffered a blowCredit score: Reuters
Nonetheless, after assembly F1 chiefs in London there’s a concern from inside the game that South Africa’s political hyperlinks to Russia may see them hit with sanctions because of the nation’s conflict with Ukraine.
In February, a Russian flagship frigate geared up with hypersonic cruise missiles arrived within the South African port of Richards Bay.
And final month a Russian cargo ship additionally arrived within the nation, with questions over the consignment, with US stories alleging it collected weapons heading for Moscow.
South Africa final held an F1 race in 1993 and the Kyalami circuit has undergone substantial funding and redevelopment however the political scenario has induced F1 some issues.
South African GP bosses at the moment are believed to be concentrating on 2025, which may once more come on the expense of the Belgian GP.
Lewis Hamilton mentioned forward of the Miami GP this yr that it might be a “enormous dream” for him to race in Africa.
He mentioned: “I’ve been chatting about having a race in Miami and the subsequent one I’ve been speaking about is South Africa, that’s what I’m pushing for within the background.
“Hopefully you’ll see that come to gentle quickly as nicely. It’s a extremely huge dream for me to race in South Africa.
“To race in Africa in my profession is a large, enormous dream for me. I do know I’ve an enormous following on the market.
“I do know lots of people are into Components One now, so I’m pushing as laborious as I can within the background and I’m going excessive up to ensure we’ve that race occur.”
When requested by SunSport, an F1 spokesperson declined to touch upon the 2024 F1 calendar.
