Exclusive: 'African' GP Planned for 2009
Cape Town's bid to land a Formula One race within the next few years could result in the first 'African Grand Prix' being added to the calendar, Autosport-Atlas can exclusively reveal
Although it had been thought that the consortium planning the race for 2009 was simply planning to resurrect the 'South African Grand Prix' name, the chief executive behind the bid, David Gant, has revealed that they want a new title for the race.
"We are going to call it the 'African Grand Prix, as we are the only [inhabited] continent that doesn't have one," said Gant in an exclusive interview with Autosport-Atlas.
Gant was a visitor at last weekend's Turkish Grand Prix as he gained further insights into exactly what is demanded of a modern Formula One venue. He believes that his plans are on course for the event to be added within four years.
"I think (Bernie Ecclestone's) FOM (company) is demonstrably enthusiastic about coming to South Africa and having an African Grand Prix," he said.
"I think the ball is in our court and so long as we go back with a viable financial model, I see no reason to believe they won't want to be there in 2009. It's ours to lose, I think."
South Africa has not hosted a Grand Prix since Kyalami last held an event in 1993.
Be part of the Autosport community
Join the conversationShare Or Save This Story
Autosport 70: F1's age-old problems and how to fix them
Best features of 2012: Early signs Kimi would star
2012: F1 as it should be?
COTA: F1 and MotoGP double-header possible but not probable
WRC 2025 rules limbo creating “critical” situation for teams
Top five roles on Motorsport Jobs this week
Perez: Red Bull can be more resilient to graining after Melbourne
Why F1 2026 worst case fears could be key to new rules success
How the F1 driver market situation sits for each team with 2025 openings
What's been going wrong for Leclerc in F1's tiny margins qualifying game
What the Chinese GP's highlights reveal about its first F1 race for five years
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments