Lewis Hamilton said F1 cannot keep “ignoring Africa” when it comes to adding races and revealed he has been working behind the scenes to put the continent back on the sport’s schedule.
Africa has been without an F1 race since the 1993 South African Grand Prix and even with 24 venues this season, F1 has not found room to add the only missing continent to its calendar.
Lewis Hamilton reveals behind the scenes work on African Grand Prix
Hamilton has long been an advocate to add Africa back to the calendar and after another visit there during his summer break, he said F1 needed to stop “ignoring” the continent.
“100% we can’t be adding races in other locations if you continue to ignore Africa,” he told media including PlanetF1.com in Zandvoort.
“The rest of the world just takes from [Africa], 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 hasn’t been there don’t realise how beautiful the place is, how vast it is and probably they don’t even know what the countries are doing still to those places in terms of holding them back.
“I think having a grand prix there will be able to highlight just how great the place is and bring in tourism and all sorts.
“What prevents us from being present on that continent? Currently, the justification is the lack of a suitable track; however, there is at least one track available [Kyalami], and in the immediate future, we should utilize that track to include it in our calendar.
“Subsequently, we can focus on developing new options, which will be a topic of discussion with [F1 president] Stefano [Domenicali].”
Recently, reports have indicated that Rwanda, located in East Africa, is pursuing a deal to host F1 events, and Hamilton has mentioned his involvement in supporting their initiative.
“Rwanda is among my favorite destinations,” he remarked. “I have been actively engaged in discussions regarding this. I have communicated with individuals in Rwanda and South Africa. While Rwanda represents a long-term project, it is remarkable how eager they are to be included.”
Earlier this month, Christian Gakwaya, president of the Automobile Club of Rwanda, stated that the country is “prepared to host an F1 race.”
“It is time for Africa to be integrated into the F1 calendar,” Gakwaya asserted. “We are equipped to host an F1 event.”
“Rwanda presents an excellent opportunity for the revival of Formula One in Africa. We are committed to putting forth our candidacy.”
“Our interest in Formula One aligns with the national strategy to leverage sports for economic transformation.”
“For motorsports in Rwanda, hosting F1 is a crucial element of a comprehensive strategy that encompasses infrastructure development, capacity building [social and economic development], educational initiatives, and the ambition to host more international events and championships.”