Plans for the first Vietnam Grand Prix, which will appear on the 2020 F1 calendar, are at an advanced design stage according to FIA race director Charlie Whiting.
The country’s inaugural Formula 1 race will be held on a street circuit 12 kilometres west of the centre of its capital Hanoi.“There’s no actual progress on building the track but the site’s been identified,” said Whiting, who visited the proposed site last week. “It’s in the advanced stages of design and as far as I’m aware they’re aiming for a 2020 grand prix which shouldn’t be a problem based on previous experience.”
The track will include a purpose-built section for the pits, similar to Singapore’s Marina May circuit.
“It’s mainly on the streets and there’s a section which is not yet built so it’s an open site where the pit buildings are going to be,” said Whiting “There will be part of the track that will be built there, which doesn’t exist at the minute but it will become a road.”
Red Bull held a demonstration run for its F1 show car in Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City earlier this year (pictured).
Adding another round to the F1 calendar could provoke opposite from teams. Renault team principal Cyril Abiteboul has suggested reducing the calendar to 16 races while Red Bull team principal said the current 21-race schedule is “saturation point”.
There are 21 races on the provisional 2019 F1 calendar.
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Kribana (@krichelle)
8th October 2018, 6:55
This will attract a lot of southeast asian F1 fans… Malaysia substitute…
Phylyp (@phylyp)
8th October 2018, 7:00
Without Singapore level of prices, one would hope. @krichelle
Jere (@jerejj)
8th October 2018, 10:17
@krichelle ”Malaysia substitute” – Not really as the distance between Hanoi and Sepang is a massive 2,081.82 km by air, so they aren’t exactly close to each other geographically.
BasCB (@bascb)
8th October 2018, 11:56
Malaysia substitute in the sense that the same ppl who used to go to Malaysia (from Australia, Indonesia, India as well as China, Japan) would come to Vietnam @jerejj
hahostolze (@hahostolze)
8th October 2018, 9:33
That doesn’t sound like a far enough stage for a 2020 race, IMO.
Jere (@jerejj)
8th October 2018, 10:15
@hahostolze Agreed.
BasCB (@bascb)
8th October 2018, 11:57
I guess if they really “only” have to do the pitbuildings and resurfacing, it could be @hahostolze @jerejj, but I agree with both of you that 2020 seems somewhat optimistic a timeline
BlackJackFan
8th October 2018, 19:27
There used to be an FIA regulation that any circuit (new or existing) that wanted to hold an F1 GP race should first hold a lower formula (F2? or non-Championship F1) race the year before… I think this was dropped by Bernie to help his cronies to give him huge sums of money to hold their first motor race ever…!!
Jere (@jerejj)
8th October 2018, 10:15
Too early to jump to definite conclusions on whether it could really be fully ready by 2020 or not. We all know how the Miami GP plans have panned out so far. The initial target for as early as next season was never going to work, so, therefore, it was a bit too ambitious in the first place, and now even 2020 looks a bit questionable. It can go either way with temporary circuit plans, so better to just wait and see.
Pedro Andrade
8th October 2018, 10:28
Good to have new tracks, but I agree with the teams that the calendar just can’t keep expanding forever. As a sport F1 is not equivalent to football and other sports in which the teams can just take a flight to the place 2 days before and hop on the next plane 2 hours after the main event. Each weekend takes up a week’s time, taking into account all the packing and unpacking, plus the flying around the globe every 2 weeks.
Reading Dieter’s column really puts this into perspective, as it seems like all the team personnel, drivers, journalists and FIA officials ever do is travel and attend races, forgetting that these people have families and friends, they are not there just to make Liberty Media more money. Besides, there’s also the question that having more races cheapens the product, each race no longer feels like something special that you waited a long time to happen.
Jere (@jerejj)
8th October 2018, 11:52
@Pedro Andrade Agreed. Precisely how I view it as well.
JohnH (@johnrkh)
8th October 2018, 11:32
Wow another street circuit….can’t wait :(
Neil (@neilosjames)
8th October 2018, 12:05
I don’t really want any more street circuits, but at least central Hanoi would have had the location going for it.
A load of shiny roads 12km outside the city, not so much…
Steven Robertson (@emu55)
8th October 2018, 13:17
i’ve maybe been spoiled by videogames, but i imagine a Vietnam Grand Prix to flow through mountains, rural fishing villages and paddy fields, not a generic city centre that could really be anywhere.
Paul (@frankjaeger)
8th October 2018, 14:22
Booooo to another street circuit
Picasso 1.9D FTW (@picasso-19d-ftw)
8th October 2018, 17:02
Was hoping that the sentence beginning:
would end:
I reckon a 12km street circuit would be pretty intense.