Lewis Hamilton has continued to demand that an African race be added to the Formula One calendar, insisting that he will hold talks with F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali about the possibility soon.
Hamilton has long been a champion of the sport returning to Africa, with the continent not hosting a Grand Prix since 1993, and he has dismissed suggestions that work needs to be done to bring the circuits up to FIA standards.
At last season’s finale in Abu Dhabi, he promised to hold talks with chiefs over the prospect of South Africa hosting a race. However, progress is yet to be made and Kyalami has not been named as a potential destination for F1 to branch into next.
To make matters worse for Hamilton’s bid, Argentina have stepped up plans to make their appeal to F1 following the emergence of Williams driver Franco Colapinto. Their government minister for tourism, environment and sport confirmed the plans, with an already congested schedule in place.
Eyebrows would be raised if a number of new races were added, given complaints by Max Verstappen and co that too many are held already at 24 for the current and next season. But Hamilton has now called for Rwanda to be added to the calendar.
“Why are we not on that continent? The current excuse is that maybe there’s not a track that’s ready, but there is at least one track [Kyalami] that’s ready there,” Hamilton said.
“And in the short term, we should just get on that track and have that part of the calendar and then work on building out something moving forward. That’ll be a conversation I have with Stefano [Domenicali], who I know is also pushing to make sure.
“Rwanda is one of my favourite places I’ve been to, actually. I’ve been doing a lot of work in the background on it, I’ve spoken to people in Rwanda, I’ve spoken to people in South Africa. That’s a longer project, Rwanda. But it’s amazing that they’re so keen to be a part of it.”
Hamilton travelled to various countries in Africa during the summer break this season, including visiting a refugee camp, where he saw some “amazing work” from organisations and wants to help the continent by pushing for a F1 race.
The calendar is prone to change and South Africa came close to being awarded a Grand Prix two years ago, but since then Miami and Las Vegas have joined the schedule amid a popularity boom in the United States.
Another planned change will take place in 2026, where the Spanish Grand Prix will be held in Madrid as a street race, replacing Barcelona, while Hamilton’s pleas for a race in Africa have so far fallen on deaf ears.
