Rwanda launches official bid for F1 race at Wurz-designed track

Rwanda has formally announced its bid to hold a Formula 1 race at a new track close to the planned Bugesera airport near Kigali.

The spectacular circuit, which will make full use of the hilly terrain where it is to be constructed, is being designed by former F1 driver Alexander Wurz.

Autosport understands Wurz’s company has been working on the project with the government and local representatives for more than a year. It has a fast and flowing layout that will run through the forests and around the lake there.

Wurz is also designing the new Qiddiya track in Saudi Arabia, which is set to hold the country’s F1 race once it is complete – either in 2028 or 2029.

The Rwanda push is the culmination of months of efforts by F1 and the FIA to reestablish grand prix racing on the African continent.

As revealed by Autosport in August, F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali has been in talks with representatives of Rwanda for a while about pulling together an event.

Speaking ahead of further planned meetings in September, Domenicali said: “They are serious. They have presented a good plan….It will be on a permanent track.”

Things appear to have moved forward since then and, ahead of the FIA’s Prize Gala in Rwanda’s capital Kigali on Friday, the country’s president revealed the ambitions to secure the grand prix.

“I am happy to formally announce that Rwanda is bidding to bring the thrill of racing back to Africa, by hosting a Formula 1 grand prix,” he said.

“A big thank you to Stefano Domenicali and the entire team at F1 for the good progress in our discussions so far.

“I assure you we are approaching this opportunity with the seriousness and commitment it deserves.”

FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem also met with Rwanda’s Sports Minister Richard Nyirishema at the event.

Ben Sulayem said: “To be here in Rwanda for such an important moment in the FIA’s calendar is a testament to the strength of this nation, in particular its growing influence in motorsport.

“We are aligned on our values and shared goals across key sectors such as innovation, sustainability, and road safety, and I look forward to our continued partnership. The future of motorsport in Africa is bright.”

Efforts to bring F1 back to Africa have been fully supported by Lewis Hamilton who said earlier this year that it was wrong for there not to be a race there.

Asked if the time was right to go back to the continent, Hamilton said: “100%. We can’t be adding races in other locations and continue to ignore Africa, which the rest of the world just takes from.

“No one gives anything to Africa. There’s a huge amount of work that needs to be done there. I think a lot of the world that haven’t been there don’t realise how beautiful the place is, how vast it is.

“I think having a grand prix there, it would really be able to highlight just how great the place is and bring in tourism and all sorts of things. Why are we not on that continent?”