India was such a poor place: F1 star Lewis Hamilton questions Grand Prix venues

Lewis Hamilton says he felt conflicted seeing the beautiful grand prix track in a 'poor country like India.'

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Formula One star Lewis Hamilton made his displeasure known about how new venues are chosen for races when he questioned why India was selected to host F1 in previous years.

India had hosted the F1 races in 2011, 2012 and 2013 at the Buddh International Circuit in Uttar Pradesh's Greater Noida. The venue was eventually scrapped, primarily because of tax-related disputes between FIA and the state government. Hamilton, the five-time F1 champion, recently said in an interview to BBC that he never really understood why countries with no racing tradition are being picked. "I've been to India before to a race which was strange because India was such a poor place yet we had this massive, beautiful grand prix track made in the middle of nowhere. I felt very conflicted when I went to that grand prix," he said while trying to question why FIA has signed a 10-year deal with Vietnam for races in Hanoi starting 20020. "On the racing side, I don't know how important it is to go to new countries as such. If you had the Silverstone Grand Prix and a London Grand Prix, it would be pretty cool," added the Briton.

Hamilton, who drives for Mercedes AMG Petronas, also said that countries like England, Germany and Italy need to have more than just one races because there is genuine enthusiasm for F1 here. He also said United States could be considered because the sport is finding increased interest.

The remarks are likely to rankle FIA which, in recent years, has held races in China, India, South Korea, Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Turkey, Russia and Azerbaijan - countries which have given mixed responses to F1 events. Even in India, there were in the country who had questioned the need for an 'extravagant' sport like F1. The central government at the time had exempted the sport from taxes after several teams had threatened a boycott of the inaugural race. That UP government of the time had exempted Japyee - owners of Buddh circuit - from levying entertainment and luxury tax on the event was also questioned and the matter was taken to the courts. All of this contributed to India eventually falling off the F1 calendar.