Sepang's F1 Return: Petronas Denies Fueling Grand Prix Rumors
Feb.1 - A proposed backer has poured cold water on new reports that Malaysia could soon be back on the Formula 1 calendar.
Sepang, located close to Kuala Lumpur, hosted the sport between 1999 and 2017, eventually opting to bow out after the Malaysian sports minister declared the "cost too high".
There were rumours of a potential return for the Malaysian GP last year, but the new sports minister insisted that despite F1's soaring popularity, F1 remains "very expensive".
"For now, we can't afford to have the races," minister Hannah Yeoh, still the sports minister today, added.
However, reports this week have surfaced that suggest that Petronas, Malaysia's state-owned oil company that sponsors the Mercedes team, could put up the money.
A spokesperson for Petronas, however, played down the reports.
"We wish to confirm that there have been no discussions regarding the return of Formula 1 to the Sepang circuit," they declared.
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Fake speculation as I suspected, especially since Malaysia hasn't really been keen on reviving the GP at any point post-2017 anyway.