South Africa lost its bid to host a Formula One race due to its close ties with Russia.
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According to RacingNews365, a decision was taken not to host the big event in South Africa. Following Russia’s invasion of and subsequent war against Ukraine, F1 abandoned the Russian Grand Prix while the motorsport governing body, Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), put a blanket ban on Russian and Belarussians participating without signing a neutrality agreement.
Yet, South Africa has failed to denounce Russia for the war, instead taking a neutral stance due to its membership in the BRICS association. Tensions have been high over the past year as the United States accused South Africa of supplying Russia with weapons. As a result of this, a South African Grand Prix (GP) has been deemed untenable in the near future.
The decision is also a blow to Miami-based sports investment company 777, which closed a deal with F1 and hired a venue for the event to take place in South Africa. The deal, which involved Kyalami renting its facilities to 777, was still pending a formal signature.
Although F1 has not commented on the decision, it does open a spot on the calendar for the Belgian Grand Prix.
Several industry players have been promoting the idea of a return to the Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit for the first time since 1993. Last year, Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei was optimistic about running a grand prix (GP) race in South Africa in April 2023.
The events were also hyped up by seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton. Referring to the possibility of a GP race in 2024, the British driver says that it is a big dream for him. ‘To have raced in Africa during my career is a huge, huge dream for me. I know we have a big following out there, well I have a big following out there, and I know a lot of people are into Formula 1 now there, so that would be amazing.’
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