Formula One in Iran?

  • Thread starter Dennisch
  • 72 comments
  • 10,768 views
Dennisch

Dennisch

Humongous member
Premium
31,917
Netherlands
Buckwheat City
Dennisch
Link

Plans for a race circuit in Iran have been formally announced, although talk of a Grand Prix in the country appears to be a little premature.

The initial intention appears to be more modest, with a Grade II FIA license the target – which will allow the track to host events such as the WTCC and FIA GTs.

The iLand Race Resport is being built not by Tilke, but by UK firm Apex. Like Korea and Abu Dhabi, it is part of a much larger city/resort development.

Clearly the Iranians have an uphill task in terms of international PR, so it will be fascinating to see how their project fares.

A statement today explained: “The directors of TSI Group and their iLand resort, a 1,700 hectare resort city currently under construction in Parand city on the outskirts of the Iranian capital city of Tehran, are pleased to announce their plans for the exciting new iLand Race Resort development.

“The iLand Race Resort will comprise a 5.0km race circuit built in the style of the classic ‘naturally contoured’ circuits such as Spa-Francorchamps, the Nürburgring Nordschleife and Donington Park. It is to be built on a parcel of land of 75 hectares that is 1,100m above sea level, with a natural topography range of 22m.

“It will be serviced by a country club, expo center and road safety training school and will be linked to the wider nearby development through the iLand Central Business District. Initial groundworks have commenced for construction and Phase 1, the West circuit, is scheduled for completion in 2012, with full construction and operation anticipated in 2013.”

The investors have chosen not to hire Tilke, but instead chose the company behind recent updates at Silverstone: “The circuit and the adjacent development is to be designed and the construction project management supervision is to be provided by the British motorsport design consultancy Apex Circuit Design Ltd., with support from their co-consultants Ridge and Partners and Mott Macdonald in the UK, teamed with the iLand technical group in Tehran and their locally appointed architects, engineers and contractors.

“The aspiration for the circuit is initially to attract an FIA Grade 2 license and to accommodate regional and International race events and Iranian corporate entertainment, education and motorsport activities; the circuit development will be contained within an economic free zone and is only 5km away from Tehran Iman Khomeni Airport.”
 
Last edited:
It's not going to happen. Formula 1 cannot - and more to the point, will not - race at a Grade-2 circuit. They only race at Grade-1 venues.
 
They eventually want to grade it up to 1, but that's still a long time away I think.
 
I'd like to believe that sport can transcend the petty bullcrap of politics and religion, but until their leader can start recognizing the rest of the world, the thought of having Iran included in a "world championship" of any type is by definition, ludicrous.

If they want to build their own circuit, then I'm all for it. But on an international stage? Not yet.

[/ biased rant]
 
Last edited:
interludes
It's not going to happen. Formula 1 cannot - and more to the point, will not - race at a Grade-2 circuit. They only race at Grade-1 venues.
Click to expand...

Here it shows that it will more likely be a GP2 track at first and then if it has success at that they'll upgrade it to the larger stage. Money might be another factor, but we'll see down the line. I think the ideas they have for the track from what they want to take emulations off of, and not just go with a Tilke McTrack. Also if Eccelstone can make money and get a new audience for F1 -or expand- he'll find a way to persuade the track owners to upgrade it to a 1 standard and get F1 there.

EDIT:
Pupik
I'd like to believe that sport can transcend the petty bullcrap of politics and religion, but until their leader can start recognizing the rest of the world, the thought of having Iran included in a "world championship" is by definition, ludicrous.

If they want to build their own circuit, then I'm all for it. But on an international stage? Not yet.
Click to expand...

I think these type of people are what work best with Bernie really. He seems to get along with these types hence why Bahrain would have gone through if not for other bodies.
 
Last edited:
Personally, I have no problem with a GP in Iran, the same as I have had no problem with Bahrain. As long as the competitors are safe and fans of the sport can peacefully attend and watch the race in safety too, then all is well.

Sounds like they are being a little more careful with their money too by starting with a Grade 2 circuit, perhaps they really do plan on building up motorsport in the country before having a GP...rather than the other way around like Bahrain, Abu Dhabi, Korea, Turkey, etc.

If this means my fellow motorsport fans in Iran can enjoy much more local motorsport then this is great. And this is the attitude I prefer to take when it comes to political areas like this.
As I have said over and over on the Bahrain topic, sport doesn't need to be seen as a political message.
 
Pupik
I'd like to believe that sport can transcend the petty bullcrap of politics and religion, but until their leader can start recognizing the rest of the world, the thought of having Iran included in a "world championship" of any type is by definition, ludicrous.

If they want to build their own circuit, then I'm all for it. But on an international stage? Not yet.

[/ biased rant]
Click to expand...
I've heard that most Iranians aren't too concerned about who is American and who is not. You can actually go there and - provided you don't draw attention to your nationality - most of the people are pretty hospitable. It's just the Powers That Be that make a song and dance out of it. Besides, Iran participate at the Olympics, don't they? They continue their policy of blowing things out of proportion by refusing to compete against Israeli athletes (Iran, if you really want to make a statement, competing against them and beating them will do you many more favours than organising boycotts), but from the sounds of things, it's not a sentiment that is voluntarily shared. True, an Iranian Grand Prix would make an Israeli Grand Prix impossible (and probably the ultra-PC dream of a gay, black, disabled, Jewish, female driver as well), but political image is probably not the biggest challenge facing Iran.
 
^ and I'm not too concerned about an occasional American or even an Israeli competing in Iran. But there's a lot of work left to do to impress me on that front. True, Iran's made lots of strides recently for equality (more so than Israel's hopes of ever hosting a Grand Prix!), but I think there's probably another 10-20 years of goodwill before I think it's a safe enough and just enough place to host a major world-wide sporting event. Granted, I bet the average Iranian would love to have a Grand Prix race or something similar, and doesn't actually care where their sports idols and celebrities come from. Most intelligent Iranians probably see through the dogmatic excretions their leaders spout about who's ruining their country and lifestyle, so as to distract them from their disappointment and their leader's greed and petulance, that I agree.

I know I sound like a total Blowhard American Ignoramus for saying so, but when Iran gets a leader who actually wants to make peace with Iraq and Israel, then I'll put them in the same sentence as international motorsports and the like.
 
Last edited:
Actually, I have to admit the idea of an Israeli Grand Prix really doesn't sound like a good idea to me at any time. I still stand by saying that I'm happy to see races in such countries at least just for the motorsport fans there...but I have to admit I very much dislike F1 getting anywhere near that mess. Which is kind of weird though I guess Iran is less of a mess than Israel though it is still a mess.
 
Ardius
Personally, I have no problem with a GP in Iran, the same as I have had no problem with Bahrain. As long as the competitors are safe and fans of the sport can peacefully attend and watch the race in safety too, then all is well.

Sounds like they are being a little more careful with their money too by starting with a Grade 2 circuit, perhaps they really do plan on building up motorsport in the country before having a GP...rather than the other way around like Bahrain, Abu Dhabi, Korea, Turkey, etc.

If this means my fellow motorsport fans in Iran can enjoy much more local motorsport then this is great. And this is the attitude I prefer to take when it comes to political areas like this.
As I have said over and over on the Bahrain topic, sport doesn't need to be seen as a political message.
Click to expand...

Exactly my point, except for the Bahrain deal and other nations like it. We don't want another South Africa deal like back in the 80s with F1. If a nation is killing their people and the F1 corporate parade comes to town during the deal, the sport is reflecting an image that humanist issues aren't going to stop the show from being presented to those of the higher class who may or may not have some part in killing protesters. I agree it should always be safe, but no team or racers should be obligated to race during such cultural/international issues. However, it's hard not to have social and political issues of a nation fall over into the sport, similar to the complaints over China in the 2008 Summer games. This may become an issue due to how a nation may use a race to blind the international stage.


Other than that like I said in my original post, Iran probably needs to build the racing sport in their nation and I think Bernie would like to help build it. GP2 and more local events are a great start to catapult them into F1 and maybe one day get a driver from the region. I think the track looks exciting especially the structures around the track like other Asia nations.
 
Hence why I said "and fans of the sport can peacefully attend and watch in safety too" - which wasn't possible in Bahrain earlier this year. Some people were not going to peacefully attend and not everyone was safe. This is why the Bahrain race shouldn't have gone ahead in my opinion - nothing to do with why everyone wasn't safe.
 
Pupik
I know I sound like a total Blowhard American Ignoramus for saying so, but when Iran gets a leader who actually wants to make peace with Iraq and Israel, then I'll put them in the same sentence as international motorsports and the like.
Click to expand...
I'll be disappointed in the sense that I need a deal with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to happen in order to complete a line in Bernie Bingo. Otherwise, I'm stuck with Robert Mugabe, Alexsander Lukashenko or Kim Jong-Il to get the mandatory "deal with a despot" category, and what are the chances of a Zimbabwean, Belarussian or North Korean Grand Prix?
 
Well, they're going to have to join the queue. America and Russia are joining the championship, while Argentina, Mexico, South Africa and Thailand have all expressed interest. Then there have been other countries suggesting they might like a race of their own (although exactly how committed they would be is open to question), including the Ukraine, Croatia, Venezuela, Vietnam and Hong Kong, while Turkey has talked about getting back in. So, at best, Iran would be seventh in the queue; at worst, they would be thirteenth.
 
That's why I think ten events should be nominated to be run on a yearly basis, and twenty events should operate on a bi-annually rotating schedule.
 
Sounds alright but who would be allowed to do that, or better yet should a contract be set up that every ten years 10 of the 30 tracks allowed get a yearly race while the other 20 are bi-annual. Maybe a lottery system be put in place, I don't know. Everyone would like 30 races but you have to lose something and I think that's why your idea doesn't sound too bad.
 
I imagine that it would work in such a way that the FIA would pick out ten "core" races - events that are considered critical to the championship (ie Silverstone, Monaco, Monza). These events would be given a protected status; if their contract comes up for renewal, then they get the first priority in negotiations. They may also get a (slightly) discounted rate.

The other twenty races would be considered extra events, and alternate between years, such as the proposal for sharing the Belgian and French Grands Prix. Two events would be "twinned" and would always share with one another; for example, Bahrain and Abu Dhabi, China and South Korea, Malaysia and Singapore (though they would not necessarily be put together on the basis of geography). In order to be upgraded to core status, these events would have to have been a part of the championship for ten years (meaning they have held five races). They would get second priority when negotiations came up - if an existing core event departed, a newly-upgraded event would fill the vacancy before a brand-new one. If the roster of core events is already filled when these events are upgraded, then they remain on a rotational basis.

The catch in all of this is that existing contracts with circuits expire at different times. So, Bahrain and Abu Dhabi could be twinned, but Bahrain would be promoted to core status before Abu Dhabi. Ideally, FOM would find a way to "reset" the contracts so that both events that are twinned come up for renewal at the same time. That way, if one departs, a new twin can be found.
 
The proposal is called "iLand". I wonder what Apple thinks of that?

Anyway, here's the circuit design:

iland_iran-track-map-1.jpg


It's clearly been designed to fit into the space available. I also find it interesting that the initial plan is to build it to Grade-2 specs, in order to tempt the likes of GP2 to the circuit. The catch is that GP2 Asia - the series most likely to visit the circuit - has disbanded and absorbed into GP2. Starting in 2012, the GP2 Series will go to some of the Formula 1 flyaway events. So GP2 won't go to iLand unless Formula 1 does.
 
It looks like a cross between Paul Ricard and Moroso Motorsports Park. A few too many corners I'd say.
 
Okay, as insane as the idea of a race in Iran sounds, there may actually be some potential hidden in this circuit:

1zmf3w1.png
 
China is on the calender, so that would make Iran a little less insane.

If Bernie thinks he can make money, the race will come.
 
Why does a circuit need to be judged on the number of potential opertaking points? Yas Marina was (supposedly) designed with overtaking in mind, and look how that worked out.
 
I actually want this to happen. Maybe it will diffuse the whole international tension with Iran.

That, or Ferrari will pay the US to bomb the circuit if they have a bad Saturday.
 
Omnis
I actually want this to happen. Maybe it will diffuse the whole international tension with Iran.
Click to expand...
Well, Qatar won the 2022 FIFA World Cup bidding process on the basis that "football has united the Middle East". As soon as they said that, nobody else stood a chance (despite Australia's claims that vote-rigging was rife, but I suspect they didn't want to admit they had done an incredibly poor job in putting together their own bid). Motorsport might not be able to unify the Middle East (apparently it's actually quite popular in Iran), but maybe it can, as you say, work towards diffusing tensions.
Omnis
That, or Ferrari will pay the US to bomb the circuit if they have a bad Saturday.
Click to expand...
But this statement leads me to believe you have been kidding all along.
 
No, my sentiment is true. I am just worried about what could happen if the warmongers get their way.
 

Latest Posts

Back