Lewis Hamilton insists Formula 1 cannot “continue to ignore” Africa as he reveals he has spoken to those hoping to stage a grand prix in Rwanda.
As revealed by Motorsport.com in an exclusive interview, F1 bosses have scheduled September talks with representatives of Rwanda as they continue to push on with plans to host a race in the East African country.
Despite the current calendar containing a record 24 races, there could be further stops added at a later date, with plenty of prospective venues eager to get involved in the boom in interest.
The African continent has not staged a round of the F1 championship since the 1993 South African Grand Prix and Hamilton believes it is time the series returned.
Asked at the Dutch Grand Prix if it was the right time for a race to return to Africa, the seven-time world champion replied: “100%. We can’t be adding races in other locations and continue to ignore Africa, which the rest of the world just takes from.
“No one gives anything to Africa. There’s a huge amount of work that needs to be done there. I think a lot of the world that haven’t been there don’t realise how beautiful the place is, how vast it is.
“I think having a grand prix there, it would really be able to highlight just how great the place is and bring in tourism and all sorts of things. Why are we not on that continent? And the current excuse is that there’s not a track that’s ready, but there is at least one track that’s ready there.
Alain Prost, Williams FW15C Renault.
Photo by: Motorsport Images
“In the short term, we should just get on that track and have that part of the calendar and then work on building out something moving forward.”
F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali told Motorsport.com that a meeting had been set up with Rwanda to talk about the project, which he said showed promise.
“They are serious,” said Domenicali. “They have presented a good plan and actually we have a meeting with them at the end of September. It will be on a permanent track.
“We want to go to Africa, but we need to have the right investment, and the right strategic plan.”
Hamilton would be open to discussions on the matter with Domenicali as Rwanda seemingly continues to strengthen its interest in hosting a race.
Rwanda has shown an increasing interest in motor racing, with representatives of the Rwanda Development Board travelling to the Monaco GP this year to meet with the FIA, while the country will also be…
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