The presence of the King of Malaysia in Monaco suggests a return of Formula 1 to Sepang
Abdullah Shah, the King of Malaysia, was present on the podium of the Monaco Grand Prix last weekend during the trophy ceremony. A presence that seems to hold significance with regards to the return of the sport in the Asian state.

It is a presence that could have gone unnoticed, but Abdullah Shah, the King of Malaysia, was present alongside the Monegasque state authorities and FIA President Mohamed Ben Sulayem on the podium of the Monaco GP.
Absent from the Formula 1 calendar since the end of the 2017 season, Malaysia seems to once again desire the premier category of motorsport. The Malaysian Grand Prix, held at the Sepang International Circuit, had been continuously included in the Formula 1 calendar since 1999.
The Malaysian government at the time believed that the lack of popularity of Formula 1, at a time when Mercedes was dominating the sport, no longer justified the amount to be spent to host the premier category of motorsport.
The presence of the King of Malaysia, Abdullah Shah, on the podium during the celebrations after the Monaco race seems to be a sign of a newfound interest from “Mini Asia” in the sport. The increasing popularity of Formula 1 since the arrival of Liberty Media is likely a factor that influenced this decision.
« Formula 1 remains very expensive but we would like to reintegrate it into the calendar if an acceptable agreement could be reached with the leaders of Liberty,» confirmed the Minister of Youth and Sports, Hannah Yeoh. « Especially since we have already spent a little over 4.5 million euros just to repair the aging infrastructure of the Sepang circuit and modernize the track.
The MotoGP World Championship remains one of the few major motor sports championships still taking place today on the Sepang circuit.