Max Verstappen feels South Africa could most likely be the next destination for F1 in the forthcoming 2023 season.
Earlier this month, a report from Dutch publication De Telegraaf hinted at the possibility of a reshuffle of the F1 calendar, with the Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit touted for a return for the first time since 1993.
During a recent interview with LadBible in the UK, both Max Verstappen and his Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez admitted that they are keen to see South Africa return to the calendar. The 24-year-old said:
“When you look at the continents where you race, I think we definitely need to try and pursue a bit more into Africa. At the moment, it looks the most likely place to go to is South Africa because they already have a track and they (F1) have been there before.”
F1 has already confirmed one new race for 2023 so far, with the inaugural Las Vegas GP set to join the calendar. The Shanghai International Circuit is also expected to return after a three-season gap as well as the Losail Circuit in Qatar, which signed a long-term contract that kicks in after the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
The addition of South Africa could mark the end of the line tracks like the Circuit Paul Ricard and the Circuit Spa-Francorchamps. The fate of Monaco also hangs in the balance with the Baku City Circuit out of contract following the 2023 season as well.
As a team, Red Bull were lucky to get P2 in Austria, claims Max Verstappen
Max Verstappen believes he was fortunate to be able to finish the 2022 F1 Austrian GP in P2 last weekend.
The Dutchman took pole and dominated in the second Sprint race of the season. He was, however, unable to build on that in the 71-lap event, mainly due to Ferrari’s obvious pace advantage over Red Bull.
Charles Leclerc first overtook the reigning world champion on Lap 12 before executing two more overtakes on Verstappen during the course of the race.
His teammate Carlos Sainz also had Verstappen in his crosshairs before an unfortunate Power Unit failure derailed the Spaniard’s charge for a podium finish.
The 24-year-old has urged Red Bull to try and find solutions to bridge the deficit between them and Ferrari. In an interview with ServusTV after the race at the Red Bull Ring, Verstappen said:
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“I think second place is ok, because the whole race we were too slow. Ferrari was simply faster. Normally we are good with the tyres, but here we had problems. After two laps, we were slower than expected and Ferrari was faster than expected. The last eight laps in the Sprint they were also fast. I thought after the Sprint that we could still improve on the car, but that didn’t work out.”
Heading into the 2022 F1 French GP, Verstappen still leads the World Drivers’ Championship standings with 208 points after 11 rounds of racing.
