Malaysia is assessing the economic viability of hosting F1 annually at Sepang, with a feasibility report expected by November before a Cabinet decision
KUALA LUMPUR: The government is assessing whether hosting Formula One (F1) races annually in Malaysia would generate sufficient economic returns before deciding whether to bring the prestigious event back to the Sepang International Circuit (SIC) on a permanent basis.
Youth and Sports Minister Dr Mohammed Taufiq Johari said a comprehensive assessment was necessary as hosting F1 involved substantial costs and required careful consideration of feasibility and return on investment (ROI).
He said although hosting the Bahrain F1 Grand Prix (GP) in Malaysia from Oct 2 to 4 was projected to generate RM950 million in economic returns, the government needed to determine whether similar benefits could be sustained if the race were held annually.
“If we look at 2017, ticket sales were only about 30,000, compared with nearly 100,000 tickets this year.
“There has also been a proposal to hold the race once every few years in collaboration with another country, but this is still at an early stage,” he said in reply to a supplementary question from Syahredzan Johan (PH-Bangi) on the permanent return of F1 to Malaysia during the Minister’s Question Time (MQT) in the Dewan Rakyat today.
Dr Mohammed Taufiq said the Youth and Sports Ministry (KBS) had been tasked with leading an F1 evaluation committee, involving all ministries and the Chief Secretary to the Government, Tan Sri Shamsul Azri Abu Bakar, to assess hosting costs, ROI and infrastructure readiness to ensure the economic benefits could be enjoyed more widely.
He said the evaluation report was expected to be completed by the end of November before being presented to the Cabinet for a decision on whether to bring F1 back to Malaysia.
Dr Mohammed Taufiq stressed that any decision on F1 must ensure that allocations for athlete development and other sports were not affected.
In reply to Datuk Wan Hassan Mohd Ramli (PN-Dungun) on developing motorsports talent so that Malaysia would not merely be a team sponsor or race host, he said KBS allocated RM5.6 million in 2025 to implement 29 programmes involving 159 activities and competitions in two- and four-wheel motorsports nationwide.
He said grassroots motorsports talent development efforts were continuing this year through various programmes under the Rakan Muda initiative, including motocross, go-karting, drifting, rallying and minibike racing.
He added that KBS, through SIC, also supported local racing talent through championships such as the Malaysia Touring Car Championship (MTCC) and Sepang 1000km, while remaining committed to exploring industry partnerships to strengthen local talent development.
Dr Mohammed Taufiq also expressed his gratitude to His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia, and thanked Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim for maintaining good diplomatic relations with Bahrain, which had enabled Malaysia to host the Bahrain F1 GP.
F1’s return to Malaysia followed discussions and cooperation involving Sultan Ibrahim and Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa, as well as the two governments, to retain the Bahrain GP on the 2026 F1 calendar after the race was cancelled earlier in the season amid geopolitical tensions in West Asia.