Rumor: New candidate for future Africa GP emerges (2nd Update)

Giancarlo Fisichella, a former Renault and Ferrari driver, is supporting the Formula 1 initiative in Zanzibar, Africa.

Fisichella is reportedly overseeing the technical aspects of a track in Zanzibar, supported by local government officials. The proposed track site is southwest of the island, with an allocated area of 2.5 square kilometers.

The region secured a €500 million investment for the project, aiming to start construction by September 2025 and complete it by 2027. However, further investment would be needed to meet FIA Grade 1 standards.

The proposed track site is situated southwest of the island, off the Tanzanian coast in the Indian Ocean, near Dar es Salaam, with an allocated area of 2.5 square kilometers for construction.

The aim is for track construction to commence by September 2025, targeting completion by 2027.

However, due to insufficient infrastructure on the Archipelago, additional investment would be necessary thereafter to develop the track to meet FIA Grade 1 standards. Consequently, it remains to be seen if Zanzibar will be able to host a Grand Prix as early as 2028.

(GMM) A solution to the notable absence of an African GP may be emerging in the shape of Zanzibar – an archipelago off the coast of the African mainland.

It is believed that both Liberty Media and the FIA are united when it comes to acknowledging that the sport needs a race in Africa.

Last year, F1 came close to a deal to revive the old South African GP at Kyalami – but it fell through in the final stages.

FIA president Mohammed ben Sulayem, however, told motorsport-magazin.com earlier this month: “We have very good contacts in Africa and more attention should be focused on Africa.”

And now, Italy’s La Gazzetta dello Sport said the new circuit project for Zanzibar is “dreaming of a future in F1” and has the involvement of former F1 driver Giancarlo Fisichalla.

“The first concrete step towards construction was taken in September 2022, when a government body on the African island gave its approval.”

And in November of last year, the land for the track was put into the hands of project investors, who have engaged Fisichella as a technical consultant.

However, correspondent Marco Bruckner admits that finishing the circuit and gaining FIA approval “is anything but a simple task”.

“The laying of the first stone is not scheduled until 2025, with the opening of the first part of the circuit only coming in 2027,” he explained.

“It is difficult to imagine that the track will obtain the necessary certifications before the end of the decade,” said Bruckner.

(GMM) Another candidate to host Formula 1’s return to Africa has emerged.

Last year, a project to bring the sport back to Kyalami in South Africa collapsed – but F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali says he is still working “very hard” on an Africa GP project.

“What I want to avoid is that we go there one year and then forget it,” he said.

[Editor’s Note: Kyalami will not be on the 2024 F1 calendar, that’s fairly certain now]

According to the Italian portal Sportface, the leading candidate at present is a EUR 500 million project in Zanzibar – an archipelago in the Indian Ocean off Tanzania.

It is believed that funding by ZIPA, the Zanzibar Investment Promotion Authority, has been agreed with the backing of the government.

Former F1 driver Giancarlo Fisichella, an Italian, is believed to be involved.

A spokesman for the Zanzibar project is quoted as saying: “We are delighted and honored to have the blessing of his excellency the president of Zanzibar and chairman of the revolutionary council to introduce motorsport to Zanzibar.

“It will be the game-changer not for the race itself, but because it will bring Africa and Zanzibar onto the global tourism and service scene.”