The Formula One calendar has seen a great many new a peculiar additions over the last few years. In 2017, the introduction of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix raised some eyebrows, but didn’t quite receive the level of backlash as the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix or the Qatar Grand Prix, which entered the fray in 2021.
It’s clear that F1 wants to give credence to its World Drivers’ Championship title, but it’s seemingly overlooked more viable racing nations. The big one that sticks out is one of only two national Grand Prix races that aren’t on the F1 calendar, the New Zealand Grand Prix. Only the Macau Grand Prix sits alongside New Zealand off of the schedule.
With the Miami Grand Prix jumping on the schedule this year, New Zealand has once again been shrugged aside, so will Ferrari ever race there in an F1 event?
Money talks in Formula One
New Zealand has contributed some superb drivers to the F1 circuit over the decades, namely Bruce McLaren, Danny Hulme, and Chris Amon. The spirit of Kiwi driving still races through the World Championships to this day. Bruce McLaren is the founder of McLaren, and the team is the most successful in the sport’s history, according to the Philipp Briel article for Red Bull posted here.
The New Zealand Grand Prix itself has run since 1950, taking place at several tracks around the island nation in its history, but currently settled at the Hampton Downs Motorsport Park in northern Waikato. It’s the signature race of the open-wheeler Toyota Racing Series, which is widely considered to be one of the top winter series in the world, allowing several future F1 drivers, like Lando Norris and Daniil Kvyat, to cut their teeth.
Yet, the New Zealand Grand Prix is continually snubbed, overlooked, or outright ignored by Formula One organizers, with one key aspect seeming to be the consensus reason why. Saudi Arabia’s state-owned oil company Aramco committed to a $40 million per year sponsorship deal to get the F1 to Jeddah, according to this piece from Laurence Edmondson, F1 Editor for ESPN. New Zealand likely doesn’t have that kind of cash lying around and doesn’t feel the need to wash its reputation.
New Zealand would make for a novel addition
Formula One may already have the Australian Grand Prix, but New Zealand is a vastly different country and could make for one of the most scenic additions to the calendar. There aren’t any FIA Grade One tracks as it stands, but the Bruce McLaren Motorsport Park is Grade Two, and the Hampton Downs Motorsport Park is given a Grade Three by the governing body.
So, a fair bit of work is needed to bring the national tracks up to F1 standards, but after that, the country could be a huge draw to the five-million population and overseas fans. Not only is there a huge range of high-octane experiences at the Hampton Downs, such as Go-Kats, Lamborghini Huranacan Hot Laps, the Mad Lab, and Auto Addict events, but also everything else that New Zealand has to offer.
On race weekend, locals and tourists can make the most of the entertainment options and famous top locations. This ranges from the tremendous range of online casino games that now battle to offer new players the best possible welcome offers like no-deposit spins – Fintan Costello, MD of Bonusfinder has his favourites listed here – to classic spots like the Fiordland National Park, Queenstown, Lake Taupo, and, of course, Hobbiton.
As has become the case in Formula One, as it is in many internationally-viewed sports, money is the primary driver for governing bodies. Regardless of the history of New Zealand in racing or the idyllic setting for an event, it seems very unlikely that the nation would be willing to pony up what’s now expected of new venues.
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