The promoters of the Mexican Grand Prix have announced on social media that they are set to sign a new three-year deal with Formula 1 on Thursday. The Mexican event, held since 2015 in its second iteration at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in Mexico City, was among several races – along with Spain, Germany Italy and Great-Britain – whose future beyond the current year was in doubt.
“The City of Mexico’s #FIESTA will continue! Thanks for being the best fans on the planet. Stay tuned on our social channels tomorrow to know all the details,” organisers announced on the race’s official Twitter account.
The news was also confirmed in a video by Mexico City’s mayor, Claudia Sheinbaum: “I want to share some good news that I just received,” she said – “Formula 1 is staying in Mexico City. The FIA president is going to be here tomorrow to sign it. This is good news for the city. I also want to tell you that this is thanks to a group of businessmen who made this possible because this time the city is not using any public funds. It’s good news for the city. It brings tourism, it brings income, and it’s also good for the country.”
At the same time, the Formula One motor-racing series is in talks over the possibility of staging a grand prix in Saudi Arabia, according to multiple reports. The Reuters news agency, citing sources familiar with the matter, reported that team bosses have been consulted on the matter, with reassurances sought over Saudi Arabia’s human rights and gender equality practices.
Reuters added that F1 has held similar discussions with many other prospective hosts.
According to UK newspaper The Times, the Saudi Grand Prix could be held as early as 2021, by which point the F1 calendar could feature as many as 24 races. The series is already expected to include 22 races next year following the addition of events in Vietnam and the Netherlands and extended deals for the Australian and British grands prix.
A Saudi grand prix would be F1’s third race in the Middle East, joining Bahrain and Abu Dhabi.
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