No 'gostan' on F1 decision, clarifies minister

The cabinet will not reverse the decision to stop holding Formula 1 (F1) races in the country as they become too costly to organise, Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman said today.

The youth and sports minister said this in clarifying what he said was a "misunderstanding" after Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad was quoted as not discounting the possibility of an F1 race, last hosted by Malaysia last year, being held again.

Syed Saddiq said the premier had merely said the government will continue organising other forms of motorsport events such as the MotoGP.

"I was with Tun M (Mahathir) yesterday, he said F1 was stopped. Then the reporter asked whether it will return, and Tun M said that the event no longer draws in profit, and costs a lot (to organise).

"Every year, we have to fork out between US$50 million and US$70 million to organise F1. Tun M said hence, (due to the cost) it is difficult (to organise).

“He said that Malaysia was once a pioneer in organising the race but now other countries, such as Singapore and Dubai, have come as rivals," Syed Saddiq told reporters at the Parliament building's lobby today.

Due to the diminishing returns, the prime minister had said that the country would instead focus on other forms of motorsports such as motorcycle races and superbike races (MotoGP), added Syed Saddiq.

"There is a MotoGP race in September and I was told that the tickets are almost sold out. We will make a lot of money from organising that race and at the same time, will be able to expand our technology transfer," said the minister.

When asked to confirm that F1 was not going to return, Syed Saddiq said: "That is what the cabinet has decided". -Mkini