South Africa has reportedly lost its bid to host a Formula One race in the near future, supposedly because of its political alignment with Russia.
Plans to return the Kyalami circuit to the Formula One fold for the first time in 30 years gained momentum recently after seven-times world champion Lewis Hamilton said he would like to race in South Africa .
Africa is the only continent not to have a race on the Formula One schedule. It was reported late last year that the country had lost the bid to host a race in 2023 when talks between Formula One and promoter Warren Scheckter broke down over financial details.
The focus shifted to staging a South African Grand Prix in 2024 with 777, a sports investment company based in Miami, taking over promotion of the event.
However, according to racingnews365, a decision has been made to abandon plans for a local Grand Prix in the near future due to political reasons.
“According to sources, the decision was taken because SA has aligned closely with Russia,” said racingnews365.
“Formula One would not comment on the rumours, but the decision will likely provide Spa-Francorchamps a reprieve and see the Belgian Grand Prix remain on the calendar for at least another year.”
SA, which is part of the Brics bloc of emerging economies with Russia, Brazil, China and India, has failed to denounce Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
It also faces a diplomatic dilemma when it hosts the Brics summit in August, with the government expected to provide diplomatic immunity to Russian President Vladimir Putin despite the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant for him.
A spokesperson for Kyalami declined to comment.
SA last hosted a Formula One race at Kyalami in 1993, won by Alain Prost in a Williams-Renault.
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