KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia is exploring the possibility of hosting Formula One (F1) races every few years through a partnership with another country, rather than staging the event annually, says Youth and Sports Minister Dr Mohammed Taufiq Johari (pic).
He said discussions on a possible F1 return were still at an early stage, with a government assessment report expected to be submitted to the Cabinet by November.
“Malaysia will decide whether to bring back F1 after a government committee completes its assessment of the costs, economic returns and feasibility of hosting the race,” he said at Question Time in the Dewan Rakyat yesterday.
Taufiq said the government had initially projected an economic impact of RM950mil from the Formula 1 Bahrain Grand Prix which was held at Sepang International Circuit from Oct 2 to 4.
However, he said any decision on future races would depend on a comprehensive assessment of whether Malaysia could achieve comparable economic returns.
“Hosting F1 is not cheap, and there are several important aspects that we need to evaluate,” he said.
The three-day event attracted about 261,000 visitors and recorded ticket sales of more than 100,000, compared with about 30,000 tickets sold when Malaysia last hosted an F1 race in 2017.
A committee comprising representatives from various ministries and the Chief Secretary to the government has been tasked with evaluating the event’s feasibility and return on investment, ensuring that its benefits extend beyond the Youth and Sports Ministry and Sepang International Circuit.
Taufiq said any decision to bring back F1 must also ensure that hosting costs would not come at the expense of funding for athlete development and other sports in the country.
He was responding to Syahredzan Johan (PH-Bangi), who asked whether F1 would return to Malaysia and what factors, including hosting costs, would determine the decision.
Earlier, in response to Datuk Wan Hassan Mohd Ramli (PN-Dungun), Taufiq said the recent event was coordinated through a whole-of-government approach involving eight subcommittees and some 532 volunteers.
“Local entrepreneurs operating 40 booths at the Rasa Madani food and SME vendor carnival recorded more than RM550,000 in sales during the three-day event,” he said.
On developing local racing talent, Taufiq said the ministry allocated RM5.6mil in 2025 for 29 programmes covering 159 activities and competitions in two-wheel and four-wheel motorsports nationwide.
Grassroots initiatives continued in 2026, including motocross track days, motorsports classes for women, go-karting, rally and minibike programmes.
Sepang International Circuit also supported local drivers through competitions such as the Malaysia Touring Car Championship and Sepang 1000km.
