THAI GP DISCUSSIONS, SAYS F1 CHIEF DOMENICALI

Formula 1 president and CEO Stefano Domenicali.
 

SHANGHAI, March 22 (Xinhua) -- Formula One president and CEO Stefano Domenicali has revealed advanced discussions with Thailand to host a Grand Prix, signaling the sport's ambition to increase its Asian footprint while balancing a "quality over quantity" approach to its booming calendar.

Speaking exclusively to Xinhua during the 2025 Chinese Grand Prix weekend, Domenicali confirmed that Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra had expressed "strong interest" in hosting a Grand Prix.

"The government of Thailand, the prime minister, were really interested to develop a project. We should finalize something in the next months," he said, calling the talks "very good" but cautioning "I'm not here to oversell."

The Thailand prospect arrives as F1 grapples with a record 24-race calendar since the 2024 season, up from 22 in 2021 when Domenicali first took charge. With races now spanning five continents including seven in Asia, the Italian emphasized that new additions like Thailand would require existing events to rotate or drop off the calendar.

"We don't want to go over 24 races. It's a matter of working with opportunities," he said, noting the sport's evolution from a Europe-centric schedule to a "real world championship", with fewer than half the races now held in Europe.

Domenicali stressed a focus on improving the fan experience over sheer volume. "We want to work with promoters to improve quality. That's very, very important," he said, the philosophy of which aligns with his recently announced five-year contract extension, securing his leadership of F1 through 2029.

 "We need to get into new audiences, and it's in our DNA to keep the eye on sustainability," he added.

Meanwhile, F1's grid will expand in 2026 with Cadillac as the sport's 11th team, backed by American automotive giant General Motors. Domenicali hailed the entry as a "big, tough challenge" but vital for innovation.

"Cadillac, one of the biggest manufacturers in the automotive industry in our competition, brings technology and expertise. It's beneficial to our sport," he said, though he ruled out further team additions. "We need to work on quality more than quantity." 

 - Xinhua

 

F1 TRIES TO RECOVER FROM EMBARRASSING FIRST DAY OF LAS VEGAS GRAND PRIX

AP Photo 

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Formula One is hoping to turn its luck around on the Strip, like so many other Las Vegas visitors who blow a big bankroll on arrival.

The elite global motorsports series placed a $500 million gamble on a new event in Sin City promoted for the first time by F1 and owner Liberty Media. But it now must recover after an opening-night debacle in which the first practice was ruined just nine minutes in when Carlos Sainz Jr. ran over a water valve cover on the temporary street course.

“Judge us by what happens when the checkered flag falls on Saturday," asked Williams team principal James Vowles.

When Sainz bottomed out on the drainage valve minutes into Thursday night's first practice, it caused extensive damage to the underbody of his Ferrari and Sainz said the piece broke through far enough to damage his seat. F1 then closed the course to inspect the entire 3.85-mile (6.2 kilometer) circuit that utilizes a long portion of the Strip.