South African government responds after Rwanda F1 race revelation

South Africa’s sports minister, Gayton McKenzie, has responded to the news revealed by RacingNews365 that F1 will return to Africa in 2030, in Rwanda.

On Tuesday, this website revealed that grand prix racing will return to the African continent for the first time since 1993 in 2030 at a to-be-built circuit near the Rwandan capital of Kigali. 

Rwandan president Paul Kagame has been pushing for the country to host an F1 race, with the FIA general assembly and prize-giving ceremony in 2024 taking place in Kigali, with Kagame visiting a number of grands prix, and enjoys warm relations with both FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem and his F1 counterpart, Stefano Domenicali. 

Since the last grand prix in Africa, at South Africa’s Kyalami circuit in 1993, attempts to return F1 to the only continent it does not race in, Antarctica aside, have been common, with seven-time F1 drivers’ champion Lewis Hamilton insisting that he will not retire until a race is held on the continent once again.

It was expected that Kyalami would be best placed to host a return to Africa, but despite recent attempts to get the race off the ground, they have failed, with the circuit also not currently able to host an F1 race as it does not hold FIA Grade 1 status. 

It had been suggested that the required work would be carried out if the circuit was able to piece together a package to host F1, but South Africa appears to have been passed by.

Responding to the news, McKenzie, who serves as President Cyril Ramaphosa’s Minister of Sports, Arts, and Culture, praised Rwanda for its efforts in securing a deal – but pointed out that other nations do hold multiple grands prix. 

“We are happy for Rwanda’s 2030 F1,” he wrote on social media.

“They have worked on it longer than SA and deserve it. Remember, though that one country, Italy, has had two F1s a year, and some react like a continent of 55 countries can only get one.

“SA will get F1, even before 2030.”

Between 2021 and 2025, Italy held two grands prix a year with the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at Imola joining the calendar in addition to the traditional Italian GP at Monza.

In 2020, Italy held a third race in the extraordinary COVID-season, with Mugello hosting its first and only grand prix. 

On the current calendar, the United States hosts three grands prix, with the United States GP at Austin as well as the Miami and Las Vegas Grands Prix, which joined the schedule in 2022 and 2023, respectively.