Turkish government says Formula 1 is returning next year on a 5-year deal

TL;DR

The Turkish government has announced that Formula 1 will return to Istanbul next season on a five-year deal, marking its first race since 2021. The agreement aims to showcase Turkey as a safe haven in the region amid recent disruptions in sports.

Key points

Formula 1 returns to Turkey next season
Five-year agreement announced by the Turkish government
First race since 2021 due to COVID-19 disruptions

Mentioned in this story

Formula 1Recep Tayyip ErdoganStefano DomenicaliMohammed Ben SulayemIstanbul

Formula One Turkish Grand Prix

FILE - AlphaTauri driver Yuki Tsunoda of Japan steers his car on a wet track as a safety marshal waves a red flag during practice for Sunday's Formula One Turkish Grand Prix at the Intercity Istanbul Park circuit in Istanbul, Turkey, Saturday, Oct. 9, 2021. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco, file) (ASSOCIATED PRESS) ISTANBUL (AP) — The Turkish government says Formula 1 is to return to the country next season for the first time since 2021, on a five-year agreement. The government said the agreement was due to be announced Friday at an event featuring Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Formula 1 chief executive Stefano Domenicali and FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem. Erdogan said the deal would be for “at least five years”. The Istanbul Park circuit first hosted F1 from 2005 through 2011, and next year's race would be the first since Turkey returned to the calendar in 2020 and 2021 during disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Valtteri Bottas won the most recent race for Mercedes. Hosting F1 would “demonstrate to the world that our country is the safe haven of its region,” Erdogan said. The news comes after the Iran war caused widespread disruption to sports in the region and forced F1 to call off races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia scheduled for this month. That left a large gap in this year’s schedule. The Miami Grand Prix next week will be the first F1 race since the Japanese Grand Prix on March 29. F1’s return to Istanbul had been widely expected since Domenicali said in February that it was a candidate to return. He added venues like Istanbul Park and the Portimão circuit, which will host the returning Portuguese Grand Prix next year, show F1 is not focusing too much on street races in glamorous locations. Those can be some of F1's most lucrative events, like the Las Vegas Grand Prix, but are generally less popular with drivers than purpose-built race tracks. “Turkey is not 100% confirmed. Stay tuned on Turkey, let me put it this way,” Domenicali said at the time. “This is also to answer to the people that were saying there were too many street races. The new ones that are coming are tracks, not street races.” \\_ AP auto racing:

Q&A

When will Formula 1 return to Turkey?

Formula 1 is set to return to Turkey next season, marking its first race since 2021.

What is the duration of the Formula 1 deal with Turkey?

The agreement for Formula 1 to return to Turkey is for at least five years.

Why is Turkey hosting Formula 1 again?

Turkey is hosting Formula 1 again to demonstrate its status as a safe haven in the region following disruptions caused by the Iran war.