MALAYSIAN FORMULA ONE RACE ON APRIL 8 FOR 2007

TEAMCAR - The ninth edition of the Formula One Petronas Malaysian Grand Prix in Sepang will be staged from 6th to 8th April next year.

Formula One Management Ltd (FOM), the worldwide rights holder for the Formula One World Championship, has formally informed Sepang International Circuit of the provisional 2007 dates in a letter recently. The final 2007 event calendar is only issued by FOM at the end of the year.

The Malaysian round, however, will remain as the second round of the world championship with the opening race of the 2007 season to be held in Melbourne, Australia from 15th to 18th March. Bahrain will stage Round 3 a week after the Malaysian round from 13th to 15th April 2007.

Commenting on the 2007 dates, Sepang International Circuit General Manager Datuk Ahmad Mustafa said Sepang International Circuit was happy that with the three-week gap between the Australian and Malaysian rounds, adding that it would give a longer period for its promotional drive.

In promoting the event, Ahmad said Sepang International Circuit would continue to emphasise on the regional market of Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, the Phillipines and India as its key markets apart from the traditional European sectors of Britain, Germany, Italy and Finland as well as venturing into South Africa.

The 2007 Formula One Petronas Malaysian Grand Prix will be the ninth edition of Sepang's F1 race, which traced back to 1999 when it was staged as the penultimate round in October.