Towards a Qatar F1 Grand Prix as early as 2016?
Formula 1 could soon make a stop in Qatar as early as next season, according to Qatari authorities.
The Middle East could soon see the arrival of a third round of the Formula 1 World Championship as the president of the Qatar Motor and Motorcycle Federation, Nasser bin Khalifa al-Attiyah, has stated that an agreement is imminent.
« We are on the verge of signing contracts to organize a Formula 1 race. We have completed all the steps of the process and there are only a few details left to finalize before the official signing, » stated the Qatari to AFP. If this information is confirmed, it would mean that Bahrain and Abu Dhabi, which would have a right of oversight on any additional race project in the Middle East, have not blocked it.
Al-Attiyah added that the race could be added to the calendar as early as 2016. There is currently uncertainty about which circuit would be used since the Emirati state has a track, Losail, already used by MotoGP for a night race. However, the possibility of an urban race through the streets of Doha, the capital, has also been mentioned.
Qatar’s international sports policy has experienced a significant expansion over the past several years, with the organization of various competitions such as the 2015 World Handball Championship, which concluded in early February with the French team’s victory, the 2019 World Athletics Championship, and of course, the 2022 FIFA World Cup. A proposal to host the Summer Olympics is expected in the near future.
