Formula 1 organizers together with Hanoi city officials announced Wednesday plans to host the first Vietnamese Grand Prix in 2020.
It's the first new location to be announced by F1's latest owner Liberty Media, which has been eying the Southeast Asian nation for a potential race for quite some time.
The move is part of F1's long-term strategy to broaden the appeal of the sport by hosting races in new locations.
It isn't clear if any current races will be dropped to make way for the Vietnamese Grand Prix, though it certainly is a possibility with 2019's calendar already set to host a record 21 races. It also isn't clear how the move will affect Miami's chances of hosting an F1 race.
The confirmation of the Vietnamese Grand Prix comes just one month after Vietnam's first automaker, Vinfast, debuted on the world stage. Incidentally, Vinfast is part of Vietnamese conglomerate Vingroup which is the promoter of the new F1 race.
A new 3.5-mile street circuit designed by renowned F1 racetrack architect Hermann Tilke has already been envisaged for Hanoi's city center. Elements of the track are said to take inspiration from several racetracks around the globe, including the Nürburgring's grand prix track as well as Monaco's street circuit and Japan's Suzuka Circuit. There's also a long straight stretching close to a full mile.
The Vietnamese Grand Prix will come one year before the racing body is set to introduce a next-generation F1 racer in 2021. The first design proposals focus on aerodynamics and allowing for the cars to race together better on-track. Proposals have also included less expensive and louder power units and the idea of some standardized parts.
