F1 News

Murray Barnett says F1 would 'love' second Chinese race

Murray Barnett says F1 would 'love' second Chinese race

24-01-2019 12:02

Formula 1's Head of global sponsorship, Murray Barnett, has said that Formula 1 would 'love' a second Chinese Grand Prix. 

China has become a real hotbed for Formula 1 and car manufacturers are really interested in trying to establish themselves in the Chinese market. 

Formula 1 is looking to hold a second Chinese Grand Prix according to the head of global sponsorship, Murray Barnett. 

The Chinese Grand Prix is always a successful race and has become one of the big races in Formula 1. 

Murray Barnett told China's state news agency Xinhua as quoted by Autosport, "We would love to have a second race here.

"Probably not in the short-term, given how congested the schedule is already.

"But we'd certainly love to figure out a way to have another grand prix here."

Barnett thinks that the local interest needs to match the interest of Formula 1 before any plans can be made.

"We're looking at a number of different things to try to generate more interest on a local basis.

"We can't just be here for the three days of the grand prix.

"We need to have a year-round presence here and be much more locally relevant in order to really establish a big fanbase here."

Barnett looked to previous attempts by Formula 1 in South Korea and India and said that they would learn from those mistakes. 

"We've learned what we did wrong in those races," he said.

"We're making sure we don't make the same mistakes again.

"Both of those races only had short-term deals, and we certainly believe in investing for the long-term."

In previous years there have been questions over the levels of smog but it is clear to see that there is a lot of interest in growing the Formula 1 brand in China.