Malaysia rules out return of F1 over costs

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia on Thursday ruled out Formula One returning to the country in the near future, citing costs and an already packed racing calendar.

The Southeast Asian nation first hosted an F1 race in 1999 at its Sepang International Circuit, with the last grand prix held there in 2017.

Malaysia dropped out of the F1 calendar from 2018 amid the rising costs of hosting the event.

Sepang still annually stages MotoGP motorbike racing.

Sports minister Hannah Yeoh said hosting F1 again would require the Malaysian government to pay about RM300 million annually.

Beyond hosting rights, Yeoh said the circuit requires about RM10 million a year to maintain to the required standards for top-level motor racing.

"Malaysia must also bind itself to a contract of between three to five years with Liberty Media (which holds F1's commercial rights), amounting to a commitment of about RM1.5bil during this period," she told parliament on Thursday.

"The current race calendar is very tight and if Malaysia is interested in hosting again, we will have to compete with other countries for a place on the calendar," she added.

In the region, Singapore stages a night race and Thailand hopes to become the latest host.

The Thai cabinet in June approved a US$1.2bil (RM5.07bil) bid to stage F1 on the streets of Bangkok from 2028.

Yeoh said Malaysia is not shutting the door completely on having F1 races again, if any corporate entities were willing to shoulder the costs.

"We are open to this and can cooperate," she added.

"The Formula 1 is a very prestigious sporting event that is followed by many fans around the world.

"So if we could afford it, it's a good-to-have event in Malaysia."