F1 Rumour: South African Grand Prix Revival Halted Over Political Concerns

The revival of the South African Grand Prix at Kyalami, last held in 1993, is no longer on the table, according to information obtained by RacingNews365.com.

In recent years, the possibility of reinstating the race in South Africa had been widely discussed, with Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei even prematurely announcing a race in Africa for the current season.

The backing of seven-time World Champion Lewis Hamilton, and his advocacy for F1's return to Africa, further boosted the potential for the event's success, as well as the push to bring the sport to another continent. Nevertheless, RacingNews365.com has learned that plans to hold a South African Grand Prix in the near future have now been scrapped, primarily due to political reasons.

Hamilton revealed his hopes for the event before the news of the political ties to Russia, explaining:

"Hopefully you’ll see that come to life soon as well.

"That’s a real big dream for me, 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."

Sources suggest the decision was influenced by South Africa's close political ties with Russia. F1, at this point, has not commented on the rumours.

The core issue for the F1 authorities is the strong political relationship between South Africa and Russia. The Russian Grand Prix was abruptly removed from the F1 roster following the ongoing conflict in Ukraine last year. The FIA also implemented a blanket ban on Russian and Belarussian participants unless they signed a neutrality agreement.

As a result, a South African GP in the near future is deemed unfeasible, signalling a potential reprieve for Spa. Kyalami's spokesperson could not be reached for comments.