Toto Wolff calls for F1 race return to 'untapped market' country

Toto Wolff has called for F1 to once again consider hosting a South Korean Grand Prix, labelling the nation as an "untapped market."

F1 hosted the Korean GP between 2010 and 2013 at the Yeognam Circuit, but it was cancelled for 2014 after organisers were unhappy with the terms of their contract with FOM, losing a reported $26 million in 2012.

Since then, the Malaysian GP has also dropped off the calendar, leaving F1 with three races in the Asian market, with no new grands prix being added under the modern surge in popularity of grand prix racing.

A proposed Vietnamese GP was cancelled in 2020 due COVID, and then never added back to the calendar due to the organising chairman being jailed for corruption charges, not related to the race.

Mercedes is set to host a demonstration run with Valtteri Bottas in South Korea, ahead of which Wolff lent his support for a return. 

"It has been a little bit of an untapped market for a while now, considering that Formula 1 has grown very strong over the last few years, particularly in the younger target group," Wolff explained to Reuters.

"You know, our strongest growing demographic is young females from 15 to 24, and they are very active on social media.

"South Korea is an extremely social-media-connected country, and so it would be great if we could come back and show how Formula One has changed over the last 10 years."

Currently, F1 has races in China, Japan and Singapore in the Asian market, with six in the Americas and four in the Middle East.

With the calendar growing to a total of 24 races, changes have been made to 'regionalise' grands prix, with the Japanese GP moving forward to an early-season slot from its usual September/October date, with the Canadian GP also moving forward to pair with Miami. 

There has also been talk of races rotating, with the Belgian GP set to become a bi-annual event from 2027. 

As such, Wolff believes a "blank spot" in the calendar in East Asia could be filled with a return to South Korea.

"[F1 president and CEO Stefano Domenicali - his aim is always to balance it well," Wolff added.

"There's obviously commercial factors, but also long-term planning, and I believe that we have a little bit of a blank spot in (East) Asia."