Qatar to break F1 fee record in 2017 (4th Update)
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| Note how close Qatar is to Bahrain. And Abu Dhabi isn't far away……nor is Dubai. It will be a cold day in hell before Bernie ever allows IndyCar to get their rumored race in Dubai. Hell will freeze over before that happens. |
(GMM) Bahrain has admitted it is in "talks" amid reports neighboring Qatar is about to join the F1 calendar.
Earlier, F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone said that despite the oil-rich Arab state's interest, nearby Qatar's grand prix aspirations were being blocked by Bahrain.
"They (Bahrain) said to me would I give them a guarantee I wouldn't stage another race in the Gulf, and I said yes," Ecclestone explained recently.
The 84-year-old added that although he arranged for settlement talks between Bahraini and Qatari officials, he was unable to find a solution for now.
However, early last week, the highest-ranking Qatari motor racing official Nasser bin Khalifa Al Attiyah, who is also an FIA vice-present, claimed that a deal for a 2016 or 2017 race debut is now imminent.
"We have completed all the steps and there are only a few details before the official signature," he said.
Now, the boss of Bahrain's F1 circuit, Shaikh Salman bin Isa Al Khalifa, has hinted that it is indeed possible that Qatar will soon host a grand prix.
"The talks are still on," he confirmed to Gulf Daily News.
"I really don't know what sort of impact it (a Qatar GP) will have on our race," he added.
02/08/15 Qatar has claimed to be "on the verge of signing a contract" with F1 CEO Bernie Ecclestone to host a Formula One race in the next two years, according to Daniel Johnson of the London Telegraph. The "much-maligned host of the 2022 World Cup has been pining for a place on the F1 calendar for years but has faced a stumbling block" in persuading Bahrain. Ecclestone gave the Bahrainis an "unofficial veto over other races in the region when they joined the calendar a decade ago."
However, FIA VP Nasser bin Khalifa al-Attiyah, the head of the country's motorsport federation, claimed that "only a few more details had to be ironed out before bringing Formula One to the oil-rich country." As recently as last month the Bahrainis were "prepared to block Qatar's plans for a third race in the Middle East." A spokesperson for the Bahrain Int'l Circuit was "not immediately available for comment." Telegraph
Arabian Business reported Al-Attiyah said that the race would be held in '16 or '17. He said, "We are about to sign contracts to organize a Formula One race. We have completed all the steps and there are only a few details before the official signature." Al-Attiyah added that Qatar would "offer the choice of two circuits at which to hold the race, either in Lusail, or a street course through the capital Doha." Arabian Business
01/12/15 Qatar has given the "green light for ambitious plans to hold a Formula 1 grand prix on a new street circuit in the city of Lusail," according to Noble & Straw of AUTOSPORT. Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim Ben Hamad Al Thani has "thrown his official support behind a push to secure a GP." But rather than previous suggestions of an F1 race at the Losail circuit that has hosted MotoGP since '04, the plan is for the race to "take place on a street circuit in the new city of Lusail, which has already been named as venue for the final" of the 2022 FIFA World Cup. FIA VP Nasser Khalifa Al Attiyah, who is the chief of Qatar's motorsport federation (QMMF), said that the government had asked that "everything be done" to finalize the race as it will "help promote Lusail."
01/12/15 This rumor is downgraded to 'speculation' today. Qatar's ambitious plans to stage a Formula One race and conquer the sporting calendar could continue to be thwarted by a handshake deal their Middle Eastern neighbors, Bahrain, did with Bernie Ecclestone more than a decade ago.
Ecclestone, Formula One's ringmaster, revealed he offered the Bahrainis an unofficial veto over other races in the region when they came on board in 2004. Telegraph Sport understands that officials in Bahrain have no intention of giving way.
Qatar has released images of a potential street circuit in Losail, the city hosting the final of the 2022 football World Cup. The Emir, Sheikh Tamim Ben Hamad Al Thani, is also thought to have given his backing to the project.
The Qataris have built good relations with the FIA, motorsport's governing body, with close ties to its president, Jean Todt. They also hosted the annual prize giving ceremony in Doha in December.
But Ecclestone, 84, has said no matter how much Qatar offered to host the race, its viability depends on the willingness of the Bahrainis to make a deal.
And the chief executive of the Bahrain International Circuit indicated today that they remain against plans for another race in the Middle East. Sheikh Salman bin Isa Al Khalifa downplayed their right to a veto – it is purely an understanding with Ecclestone rather than written into a contract – but said the region was not ready for more Formula One.
Speaking at the Autosport International, he said: "The thing with Mr. Ecclestone is how he values friendship. He appreciates the step we took – as we were the first people to take a chance [In the Middle East.
"I think F1's culture is growing [in the Middle East], and we can see it slowly coming about. But my personal opinion of having another race – wherever it is – I don't think we are ready for that."
Bahrain were happy for Abu Dhabi to join the calendar largely because the attendance is made up largely of foreigners, whereas the race in Sakhir is targeted at the Arab population. They fear that a race in Qatar would dilute that already embryonic audience.
Ecclestone confirmed last month he would stay true to his word and allow the Bahrainis a veto. He said: "There is a problem. When I did the deal to have a race in Bahrain I shook hands with them – promising not to have another race in the area unless they agreed to it.
"Then Abu Dhabi came along and said they wanted a race. I said I couldn't help them unless Bahrain agree to let them join the calendar. If they agreed, fine. They did agree. Now Bahrain needs to agree to a race in Qatar. If that can be sorted, fine. If not, we can't do anything about it." Telegraph
11/25/14
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| Floodlit circuit at Losail |
(GMM) Qatar, the small Arab country, looks set to break F1's record for the highest-paying grand prix host.
F1 business journalist Christian Sylt, who is close to the sport's chief executive Bernie Ecclestone, cited 'sources' in reporting that Qatar looks set to pay about $78 million a year beginning with its first race no later than 2017.
With either an event at the floodlit MotoGP circuit at Losail or possibly a street race, Qatar would join F1's other two Middle Eastern races on the calendar, Bahrain and Abu Dhabi.
"We are looking at all possibilities there," said Ecclestone. "Qatar is not signed but they are ready to go."
Writing in the Independent newspaper, Sylt said the current highest-paying race host in formula one is Abu Dhabi with its reportedly $72.5 million price-tag.
And the British journalist told us: "(Qatar's deal) would give F1 more races in the Middle East than in North America!"