Formula One chief executive officer Stefano Domenicali is to travel to Bangkok this week following the Australian Grand Prix for talks over a potential race in the Thai capital, he told Sky Sports.
The Italian ex-Ferrari boss, who has just extended his contract to remain F1 president and chief executive until 2029, is keen to examine new markets as the sport soars in popularity.
The majority of Formula One’s 24-race schedule is locked in for several years, but the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort is guaranteed only until 2026.
Photo: AP
The Belgian Grand Prix struck a deal in January to allow it to stay on the calendar for four out of six years from next year to 2031 in order to accommodate new races.
Domenicali appeared to suggest Thailand was a contender, among other venues, to join the circuit.
“The good thing that we were able to do in the last couple of years has been to focus on the places that we believe represent the future for Formula One,” he told the British broadcaster in Melbourne.
“In terms of promoters and tracks that we are already at, we have a long-term standing agreement with a lot of them that enables them to invest, to improve the facility, to improve the quality of the entertainment that we need to give to our fans,” he said.
“We receive a lot of attention from other places in the world,” he added.
“After finishing the race here in Melbourne, I go to Bangkok to see [if] there is a potential interest to develop something there,” he said.
Then-Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin hosted Domenicali in April last year to pitch the government’s vision of bringing a grand prix to the sprawling, traffic-clogged capital.
Thai officials at the time said that they envisaged the race being run on a street circuit, possibly around the city’s historic center.
Thailand is one of many countries eager to join the F1 circuit.
Historic hosts France and Germany do not feature on this year’s calendar and are seeking to return, while the Turkish Grand Prix, last held in 2021, is seen as a candidate to take one of the slots vacated by the Belgian deal.
Outside Europe, Rwanda is planning a new circuit near the capital Kigali.
The Asia-Pacific region currently hosts four races — in Australia, China, Japan and Singapore.
The Minnesota Timberwolves, with so many promising performances spoiled by late mistakes fresh in their memory bank, sure timed this strong finish well. Jaden McDaniels scored a career playoff-high 30 points and spearheaded Minnesota’s stifling defense on an ailing Luka Doncic, and the Timberwolves beat the Los Angeles Lakers 116-104 to take a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven Western Conference first-round series in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Friday night. “Jaden never looks tired. He looks like he could play 48 minutes,” said teammate Anthony Edwards, who had 29 points, eight rebounds and eight assists. Julius Randle added 22 points for the Wolves, who outscored
Inter’s defense of their Italian Serie A title was hit with a setback on Sunday as they lost 1-0 at home to AS Roma, while Scott McTominay netted a brace as SSC Napoli beat Torino 2-0 to go top of the table. No fixtures were played on Friday or Saturday because of the funeral of Pope Francis in Rome, meaning the full round of Serie A matches took place on Sunday and yesterday. Matias Soule’s first-half strike for Roma knocked Inter off top spot earlier in the day before new Napoli opened up a three-point buffer with victory in Sunday’s
FOCUS: ‘We came out here with a goal in mind ... to keep our foot on their throat and on their neck, and continue to play 48 minutes of basketball,’ Donovan Mitchell said The Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday thrashed the Miami Heat to cruise into the next round of the NBA playoffs as the Golden State Warriors battled past the Houston Rockets 109-106 to move to the brink of a series victory. After pounding Miami 124-87 in game three on Saturday, No.1 Eastern Conference seeds Cleveland once again piled on the misery for their outclassed opponents with a crushing 138-83 victory to complete a 4-0 series win. The 55-point drubbing was the largest series-clinching victory in NBA playoff history and sets up a series against either the Indiana Pacers or Milwaukee Bucks in
Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa yesterday set a women’s only world record of 2 hours, 15 minutes, 50 seconds as she won the London Marathon, while Kenya’s Sabastian Sawe put a star-studded men’s field to the sword. For 28-year-old Assefa it was ample compensation for finishing runner-up in London and the Paris Olympics last year — especially as bitter Dutch rival, the Ethiopia-born Sifan Hassan, finished third. Assefa dropped Kenya’s Joyciline Jepkosgei as the race, played out in blazing sunshine and with thousands lining the route, entered its business end. She came home almost three minutes clear of the Kenyan. Hassan, who beat her in