Ben Sulayem wants 12th team in F1: 'This should be that new team'
F1 News
Mohammed Ben Sulayem, the president of the FIA, has spoken about adding another team to the Formula 1 grid. The Emirati was hugely influential in bringing Cadillac and General Motors to the premier class of motorsport for the 2026 season, but Ben Sulayem is hoping to bring yet another competitor to the grid in the foreseeable future.
"It’s been my dream for the last two years that the big countries should have a presence in Formula 1," Ben Sulayem told French newspaper Le Figaro. With Cadillac, the US will soon be represented with a second team. However, the FIA president is hoping that China will be the next 'big country' that can come and join the F1 grid as the 12th team.
"The next step is to welcome a Chinese manufacturer. We already have a driver," the FIA president said, referring to Guanyu Zhou. But Ben Sulayem did stress that it must be a Chinese team with quality: "Should we think in terms of quantity or quality? We need quality teams."
Geely the most logical Chinese manufacturer for F1
It is not surprising that the FIA are looking at a Chinese team to be added to the grid. The country produces more than 30 million cars annually, more than the US, Japan and India combined. Incidentally, in the case of a Chinese manufacturer, Geely are the most logical party, with Zhou already an ambassador for the brand.
Geely also have a stake in the Aston Martin F1 team. However, the Chinese manufacturer has never made a secret of wanting to be active in the sport as the majority owner of an F1 team.
This article was created in collaboration with Ludo van Denderen
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