FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has said Formula 1 could return to Malaysia's Sepang circuit, but only if the country puts forward a five-year business plan, according to Paul Tan's Automotive News.
Ben Sulayem's condition was reported on Tuesday, 6 October 2026. Sepang last hosted a Malaysian Grand Prix in 2017, and the country has since been absent from the F1 calendar.
The FIA president's remarks follow signals from Malaysia's government that it wants a permanent, rather than one-off, return to the sport. Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has said bringing F1 back to Sepang would "take time," CNA reported.
Public appetite is also visible. NST Online reported that F1 fans are pressing for Malaysia to regain a permanent place on the calendar.
The financial case is still being weighed. The Star reported that economists see the recent Bahrain Grand Prix as a boost to fourth-quarter services, and that measuring the event's financial impact is central to judging whether a permanent F1 return makes sense for Malaysia.
The discussion has unfolded despite travel disruption around the Bahrain race, which SCMP noted in its report on Malaysia's ambitions.
What to watch next: whether Malaysia's government and Sepang's operators produce the five-year plan Ben Sulayem has asked for, and how economists' assessment of the Bahrain GP's financial impact shapes that decision.
