F1 Needs a African GP

Antony Snook · Nov 6, 2020

I saw a podcast on utube about taking F1 to the only continent it dose not touch Africa. Right in the middle of all the events on a non Covid 19 calendar. Kiallamy was a good event but was axed due to apartheid and racial segregation. THe track is below FIA standards but says it will be able to modify itself if it has a backer to finance event.
Another is Marrakech Morocco that i have run in Race 07 Video game. Its a good track and has multiple lanes going into turns. A outer lane and a island and a short lane that you can use with a slower entry. Really good for filtering cars and eliminating pille ups. Especially on lap 1. The FIA say it is to small. Technically Monaco is to small but we still go there.
Or we can do a street circuit in one of the major cities.

Fat-Alfie · Nov 6, 2020

But... why?

Erwin Greven · Nov 6, 2020

Kiallamy = Kyalami

Turk · Nov 6, 2020

I suppose it makes sense to have an F1 race on the continent. But it's all about how sellable F1 is in the country they pick. It will take a big investment to get a track up to spec, but if there aren't local drivers they may not get the interest with the local people.

F1 is such a money pit that I'd say it's a hard sell at the moment. It's not just about getting F1 to go there, it's finding a country that will not only accept them but invest a ton of money into it too.

Jan Larsen · Nov 6, 2020

As a former, leading figure in F1 once said: 'Africa is the butthole of the world'. While I obviously dont agree with that, I guess that pretty much sums up F1's view of Africa.

Kyalami in South Africa is basically the only, slightly viable place to host F1. However the country is a logistical nightmare, crime is through the roof and the difference between poor and rich is one of the highest in the world. The rest of Africa is just too poor to host F1. A very few of the residents would be able to afford ticket prices.

Basically, there's no market.

paracletus · Nov 6, 2020

Antarctica hasn't got one either. Yet.

Antony Snook · Nov 7, 2020

Fat-Alfie said:
But... why?

It is a world championship so it should be every continent. To raise global fan base.

Antony Snook · Nov 7, 2020

Jan Larsen said:
As a former, leading figure in F1 once said: 'Africa is the butthole of the world'. While I obviously dont agree with that, I guess that pretty much sums up F1's view of Africa.

Kyalami in South Africa is basically the only, slightly viable place to host F1. However the country is a logistical nightmare, crime is through the roof and the difference between poor and rich is one of the highest in the world. The rest of Africa is just too poor to host F1. A very few of the residents would be able to afford ticket prices.

Basically, there's no market.

How is that different than Sau Paulo or Mexico. We visit many places with rich and poor people.

Antony Snook · Nov 7, 2020

Turk said:
I suppose it makes sense to have an F1 race on the continent. But it's all about how sellable F1 is in the country they pick. It will take a big investment to get a track up to spec, but if there aren't local drivers they may not get the interest with the local people.

F1 is such a money pit that I'd say it's a hard sell at the moment. It's not just about getting F1 to go there, it's finding a country that will not only accept them but invest a ton of money into it too.

We go to places without Local drivers Turkey, Bahrain, Japan has not had a driver for some time now. But locals will just like cars with Honda Engines.

Turk · Nov 7, 2020

Antony Snook said:
We go to places without Local drivers Turkey, Bahrain, Japan has not had a driver for some time now. But locals will just like cars with Honda Engines.

Sure, but like I said F1 needs to be able to sell itself to the country. Usually local governments get involved because of the costs and infrastructure required. It might be hard to convince an electorate that now is a good time to be spending millions to bring F1 racing to the nation. Unless they have some reason for wanting that global promotion. With the current climate it's a hard sell. There might be an African nation that would see benefit in that global promotion, there are many cheaper options than F1 though, it's a niche brand theses days.

Jan Larsen · Nov 7, 2020

Antony Snook said:
How is that different than Sau Paulo or Mexico. We visit many places with rich and poor people.

Simple; Sao Paulo is Brazil. Brazil has lots of motorsport interest and a lot of people. Mexico has Perez.

Antony Snook · Nov 9, 2020

paracletus said:
Antarctica hasn't got one either. Yet.

Send Herman Tike there. A lot of land to place a monster spa sized track.

Deleted member 963434 · Nov 9, 2020

take it to Poland at tor Poznań

CaptainBread · Jul 2, 2021

F1 will not receive financial backing from the South African Government due to the government believing it is a *Something* dominated sport. The private investment is there. believe me, but not the government backing or interest.