Malaysia hopes to continue organising F1 - Khairy

Malaysia hopes to be able to continue organising the Formula One Grand Prix after the contract of the Sepang International Circuit (SIC) ends next year.

Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said the prestigious event was important in the national sports calendar and hoped the process of extending the contract between SIC and the management of Formula One was proceeding smoothly.

Commenting on the race on Sunday, Khairy said he was proud at the achievement of the Mercedes AMG Petronas F1, which grabbed top and second spots through their drivers, Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg.

In the meantime, SIC Chief Executive Officer Datuk Razlan Razali said SIC had received the green light from the government to continue the negotiation process for the extension of the contract.

"The negotiation will be started as soon as we receive a proposal from the management of Formula One, they did not impose any condition, but they only wanted to know, as host, what are our actions to improve the event for the following year," said Razlan.