Formula 1 News: South Africa officials to meet with F1 in Austria

(GMM) Kyalami in Johannesburg, South Africa, is set to take yet another big step towards a return to the Formula 1 calendar.

While there are multiple other projects aligned with F1’s mission to add the missing African content to the annual calendar, Kyalami near Johannesburg last week had its upgrade plans approved by the FIA for F1-ready ‘Grade 1’ circuit homologation.

And now, South Africa’s sports minister Gayton McKenzie is preparing to take the next major step.

“We will meet again with FOM next week in Austria,” he told eNCA, referring to the Liberty Media-owned Formula One Management and this weekend’s Austrian GP at the Red Bull Ring.

“We want to submit an official bid. The week after that, on July 1, we will announce our winning promoter. After that, it is all in the hands of Formula 1.”

Minister McKenzie sounds optimistic.

“We will have a circuit, we will have a promoter, and we will have the biggest motorsport community in Africa,” he said.

Kyalami, having hosted no less than 21 F1 races until 1993, has engaged Apex Circuit Design – known for Miami’s grand prix project – to oversee the necessary F1-ready circuit changes.

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Cape Town Out

The South Africa F1 Bid Steering Committee (BSC) said they have noted recent announcements and called the development “encouraging” and said it “bodes well for the country’s bid to host a Formula 1 race in future”.

“Whilst the committee believes this is positive news for South Africa and motorsport in our country, it wishes to clarify that the above announcement and development is entirely independent from the work of the committee.

“The committee remains seized with the evaluation and adjudication of proposals received for the staging and promotion of an F1 Race in South Africa,” they said.

“In the near future, the committee will make an announcement on the outcomes of this process along with the preferred promoter for the country.”

When asked if this means that Cape Town’s bid is not being considered, all that BSC spokesperson Prince Mlimandlela Ndamase said: “The committee is finalizing its report to the minister and should have it submitted in the next week. The report will provide an outcome on the process undertaken and the three bids received.”

One of the three bids came from Cape Town Grand Prix, where CEO Igshaan Amlay has expressed his frustration and concern with the process, stating that he had already been notified two weeks ago that his bid was unsuccessful.

“They lied to the media, because Cape Town Grand Prix sees this whole process as a flawed process, because firstly, nowhere in South Africa in the new democracy, has there been a request that you have to pay R10 million rand to bid to bring an event to the country.”

Amlay said: “When we asked them what the R10 million is for, they said it’s refundable, but they couldn’t tell us when you’re getting it back.”