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Liberty Media, which owns Formula 1′s commercial rights through the Formula One Group, is said to be in talks to add the Vietnam Grand Prix to the Formula 1 calendar in 2024.
The Vietnam GP was initially scheduled to host an F1 race on April 5, 2020. However, the COVID-19 pandemic and a series of other problems, including the arrest of Hanoi People’s Committee chairman Duc Chung, who was closely involved in the running of the race, saw the race shelved quickly.
However, the Asian country could finally see the sport visit their country next year, according to a report by Thegodflores. A Liberty Media delegation reportedly stopped in Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam, before the Australian GP to meet with officials from the city and the country to discuss the prospect of the nation hosting a race in the near future.
It has also been reported that the circuit will have a mixed layout, with the track being a combination of a part of the permanent circuit that was designed for 2020 and the main streets of Hanoi.
The Hanoi Street Circuit remained unused until January this year, when Honda Vietnam hosted its Honda Thanks Day New Year’s celebration event at the venue. A series of motorcycle races were also held around an abridged version of the circuit.
F1 could return to South Africa for first time in 31 years
Besides Vietnam, Liberty Media is also said to be exploring the possibility of taking Formula 1 back to South Africa.
The South African government is reportedly interested in resuming plans to host an F1 race. An agreement for the same is expected to be reached after 50 million dollars from the country's public budget is allocated to ensure F1 returns to Kyalami in 2024.
The South African GP first joined the World Championship calendar in 1962, with races being held at the Prince George Circuit in East London, Cape Province. It moved to the Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit in 1967, which hosted a total of 21 editions of the Grand Prix.
The South African GP was last held at the Kyalami circuit in 1993, when Williams-Renault's Alain Prost took pole position, registered the fastest lap and won the race. Ayrton Senna (McLaren-Ford) in P2 and Michael Schumacher (Benetton-Ford) in P3 completed the podium.
