Singapore in the running to host another F1 race in 2022 to replace cancelled Russian Grand Prix: Report

SINGAPORE — Singapore might see another Formula One race in 2022 if talks between F1 and Qatar fall through, major motor racing news portal Motorsport.com reported on Saturday (April 9).

This could mean that Singapore's Marina Bay Circuit could see two races this year, with the earlier race replacing a slot previously held by the now-terminated Russian Grand Prix in Sochi, thereby allowing F1 to maintain a record-setting 23-race calendar in 2022.

The Singapore race is presently slated for Sept 30 to Oct 2, while the Russian race was scheduled to be from Sept 23 to Sept 25, until the latter was cancelled following its host country's invasion of Ukraine.

“Our understanding is that we are not the first choice,” a Singapore GP spokesperson said in response to queries from TODAY.

F1 declined to comment on the possibility of a second race in Singapore.

The F1 franchise had reportedly selected Qatar, which hosted its debut race last year at the Losail International Circuit. The country has also signed a 10-year deal to host a grand prix starting from 2023.

But F1 bosses are reportedly also considering alternatives, including running two races in Singapore, if the replacement race in Qatar does not pan out.

According to Motorsport.com's sources, there are concerns about Qatar hosting the replacement round at the end of September due to the heat, where the average high is 38 degrees Celsius during the day.

However, the race in Qatar could be held after sunset — similar to the country's 2021 race — which would alleviate concerns about the heat.

Besides Singapore and Qatar, another alternative for the Russian Grand Prix could be Bahrain, which staged the Sakhir Grand Prix at the Bahrain International Circuit in 2020, reported Motorsport.com.

On Saturday, the Singapore GP spokesperson told TODAY: “We remain 100 per cent focused on delivering an amazing event on the weekend of the September 30 and in welcoming F1 back to the streets of Singapore."

In several Facebook posts on April 7 and 8, Singapore GP said its exclusive priority sale of tickets, which was supposed to run from April 7 to April 13, "sold out within hours".

A spokesperson said in response to queries that it had a limited inventory for the priority sale, which sold out five hours after the tickets were released for sale.

"There is pent-up demand after two years of no racing, higher interest in Formula 1 worldwide and together with the reopening of our borders. These are some of the likely reasons for the success of the priority sale," she said.

The race organiser said on Facebook that general admission tickets will be for sale "very soon" and reminded fans to not purchase from unauthorised resellers as they will be denied entry. The race organiser said it had observed several attempts to resell tickets in a Facebook post on April 7.

"It is against our ticketing conditions for the resale of tickets except through our authorised network and tickets identified as resold by unauthorised persons will be voided," said Singapore GP.

The main release of tickets for sale to the general public have yet to come, it added.

Singapore had renewed its contract with F1 for seven years from 2022 to 2028, the longest contract it has ever signed.

"This will give Singapore a longer runway to capture pent-up demand as international travel recovers," said the Singapore Tourism Board and Singapore GP in a joint statement on Jan 27.