Report: Malaysia may stop hosting Formula 1 after 2018

Those that frequently go to Malaysia to catch Formula 1 may soon have to see it somewhere else as the country will apparently stop hosting the motorsport in a few years time.

In a report by the Malay Mail, the country's Ministry of Tourism and Culture confirmed that they have decided to drop the motorsport event after the contract expires in 2018. Minister Datuk Seri Nazri Abdul Aziz said in a statement that the country cannot continue to support the mounting costs of Formula 1.

“The current agreement is from 2016 to 2018. So once that ends, there will be no more. F1 attendance is dropping and there is less attraction now. We are spending RM 300 million a year. We are not even making back RM 300 million,” said Aziz.

However, Aziz also said that it's a completely different scenario for MotoGP.

“It’s a different story for MotoGP, because the interest in it is still there. We will lose a lot tourism if MotoGP is stopped,” added Aziz.

With Malaysia pulling out of Formula 1, Singapore may not be far behind as well.

In a recent report, Formula 1 supremo Bernie Eccelestone said that Singapore no longer wanted to hold the motorsport event. He believes that the country has become a destination hotspot and that it no longer needed Formula 1 to attract tourists. In addition, future Grand Prix events in Germany, Brazil and Canada were also uncertain but Eccelestone did mention that they will try to keep both Canada and Brazil.

There is no word yet from Formula 1 about Malaysia's plan to stop hosting the event.