{"id":340929,"date":"2025-12-11T04:39:14","date_gmt":"2025-12-11T04:39:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/340929\/"},"modified":"2025-12-11T04:39:14","modified_gmt":"2025-12-11T04:39:14","slug":"f1-news-alex-albon-backs-thai-gp-street-layout","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/340929\/","title":{"rendered":"F1 news: Alex Albon backs Thai GP street layout"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\u2018Tops
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tIt’s all thumbs up for the Thai Grand Prix layout from Alex Albon. Image: XPB Images<\/p>\n

The Thailand Grand Prix, which could debut as early as 2028 if approved, would be held on a 5.7-kilometre street circuit in Bangkok<\/a> featuring 18 corners and a clockwise layout.<\/p>\n

The project has the backing of the Thai government, which has approved $1.9 billion AUD (40 billion THB) for the race<\/a>, with a five-year deal expected from 2028 to 2032.<\/p>\n

Albon, Thailand\u2019s only Formula 1 driver, has been involved in discussions with authorities since earlier this year and has reviewed early designs of the track.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wouldn\u2019t say I had a say in the design of it, but they brought me in in terms of what they were doing to it, and I saw the early stages and where they are at and what they released on social media,\u201d Albon told Speedcafe.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think as a street track goes, it\u2019s one of the better ones, that\u2019s for sure. I think, you know, as drivers, I think it\u2019s fair to say we like the road tracks.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I think the track layout that Thailand has presented is a great kind of middle ground where you\u2019re getting these flowing corners.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you look at the layout, there\u2019s a lot of opportunity to do different lines and that\u2019s the secret to good racing. You know, getting cars off line and getting clean air in different places. So I\u2019m all for it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Albon added that the Thai Grand Prix offers more than just a technical challenge.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The proposed layout for the Thai Grand Prix. Image: Sports Authority of Thailand<\/p>\n

\u201cObviously, I\u2019m going to be biased in my answer, but I think Thailand\u2019s a great place. Great country. Great people,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like, in many ways, I\u2019d love to introduce the other drivers to Thai culture and I think everyone would love the race. So I\u2019ll do everything I can to make it happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said the layout could provide both flowing corners and multiple racing lines, creating more overtaking opportunities than many other modern city tracks.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you look at the last few city tracks that have come away from Formula 1, I think it tops all of them,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a layout and a place I think drivers will really enjoy and a country I hope we can all experience properly when it happens.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thailand currently hosts a round of MotoGP at Buriram, but the Bangkok race would be the country\u2019s first Formula 1 grand prix.<\/p>\n

F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali visited Thailand in March 2025 to discuss the plans with Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, and Albon has worked with the Sports Authority of Thailand to explore how the sport could grow locally.<\/p>\n

Construction of the Bangkok circuit is expected to take one to two years and may be scheduled for either March or September.<\/p>\n

Albon \u2018feels responsibility\u2019 to return Williams to the front<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It’s all thumbs up for the Thai Grand Prix layout from Alex Albon. Image: XPB Images The Thailand…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":340930,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[573],"tags":[14203,64,63,817,813,816,85,176325],"class_list":{"0":"post-340929","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-formula-1","8":"tag-alex-albon","9":"tag-au","10":"tag-australia","11":"tag-f1","12":"tag-formula-1","13":"tag-formula1","14":"tag-sports","15":"tag-thai-grand-prix"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/340929","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=340929"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/340929\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/340930"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=340929"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=340929"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=340929"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}