The Vietnamese Grand Prix ( vi, Giải đua Việt Nam) was a proposed

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

Grand Prix that was first due to take place in April 2020. The race was initially postponed and later cancelled due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

and the inaugural edition of the event postponed indefinitely. The Grand Prix was removed from the 2021 calendar because of the arrest of Hanoi People's Committee Chairman

Nguyễn Đức Chung Nguyễn Đức Chung (born August 3, 1967) is a former Major General of the Vietnam People's Public Security and Vietnamese politician. He is a former Chairman of the Hanoi People's Committee. In August 2020, he was prosecuted and detained. Đứ ...

corruption Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense which is undertaken by a person or an organization which is entrusted in a position of authority, in order to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's personal gain. Corruption m ...

charges unrelated to the Grand Prix.

History

Plans for a race in Vietnam were first explored by former Formula One CEO

Bernie Ecclestone Bernard Charles Ecclestone (born 28 October 1930) is an English business magnate. He is the former chief executive of the Formula One Group, which manages Formula One motor racing and controls the commercial rights to the sport, and part-owns ...

, who abandoned the idea as there were already four races in East Asia at the time (the

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Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...

and

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

Grands Prix). Ecclestone also acknowledged that the failure of the

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and

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Grands Prix left him doubtful of the long-term viability of a race in Vietnam. The idea was revived after

Liberty Media Liberty Media Corporation (commonly referred to as Liberty Media or just Liberty) is an American mass media company controlled by chairman John C. Malone. The company has three divisions, reflecting the company's ownership stakes in Formula One ...

purchased the commercial rights to the sport from

CVC Capital Partners CVC Capital Partners is a Luxembourg-based French private equity and investment advisory firm with approximately US$133 billion of assets under management and approximately €157 billion in secured commitments since inception across American, E ...

in January 2017. The Vietnamese Grand Prix was announced in November 2018, becoming the first new race under Liberty Media's ownership. The race would join the existing Grand Prix held in

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...

, the

Singapore Grand Prix The Singapore Grand Prix; ta, சிங்கப்பூர் கிராண்ட் பிரிக்ஸ் is a motor racing event which forms part of the Formula One World Championship. The event takes place on the Marina Bay Street Cir ...

. The inaugural Vietnamese Grand Prix was initially scheduled to be held on 5 April 2020 as part of a multi-year contract during the Formula One season, but was then postponed and later cancelled due to the

. The race was also omitted from the calendar, published in November 2020, following the arrest, on corruption charges unrelated to the Grand Prix, of Hanoi People's Committee Chairman

who was one of main stakeholders involved with the event. At that time, the Vietnamese Grand Prix's contract to appear on the F1 calendar was terminated. , the race has not taken place. There is still no official announcement when or if the Vietnamese Grand Prix will make its debut.

Circuit

Formula One Grand Prix races are intended to be held on a temporary street circuit on the streets of

Hanoi Hanoi or Ha Noi ( or ; vi, Hà Nội ) is the capital and second-largest city of Vietnam. It covers an area of . It consists of 12 urban districts, one district-leveled town and 17 rural districts. Located within the Red River Delta, Hanoi is ...

. The circuit, going anticlockwise, was designed by

Hermann Tilke Hermann Tilke (born 31 December 1954, in Olpe, Germany) is a German engineer, racing driver and circuit designer, who has designed numerous Formula One motor racing circuits. Racing During the 1980s, Tilke competed in touring car racing, mainly ...

in collaboration with City of Hanoi authorities. The circuit was initially to feature a hybrid of public roads and a purpose-built section which was planned to be opened to the public in the future. An additional corner was later added to the third sector of the circuit by organisers for safety reasons, making a total of 23 turns.

References

National Grands Prix Motorsport in Vietnam Cancelled motorsport events {{F1-stub