Is F1 Coming Back to India? Here's Everything We Know

After more than a decade in the wilderness, the lords have blessed us: Formula 1 might actually be coming back to India. Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya recently visited the Buddh International Circuit in Greater Noida, and word on the street is that the government is serious about bringing the Grand Prix back to Indian soil.

Between 2011 and 2013, India had a Grand Prix. The Buddh International Circuit was genuinely world-class—drivers loved it, crowds showed up, and Sebastian Vettel won all three editions there like clockwork. For a brief, shining moment, we were part of the global motorsport conversation.

Then we fumbled it spectacularly.

Why Did F1 Leave?

We exit was less about racing and more about money and bureaucracy (two things India has in abundant supply).

At the heart of it was a bureaucratic decision that still looks baffling in hindsight: Formula 1 was classified as “entertainment” rather than a sport. That distinction meant entertainment and luxury taxes, customs duties on imported equipment, and a hosting bill that ballooned into the unsustainable.

Jaypee Sports International, which had reportedly poured over $400 million into building the circuit, simply couldn’t make the numbers work. A “one-year break” was floated in 2014, with talk of a return in 2015. It never happened. Legal disputes dragged on, losses mounted, and eventually the Buddh International Circuit passed to the Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority after Jaypee’s financial collapse.

End of story. Or so it seemed.

Now it seems like the government appears to have learned from its mistakes. According to sources, the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports is actively working to remove the tax burdens and bureaucratic red tape that killed the race the first time around. Mandaviya has suggested handing over BIC's management to a professional sports company for a few years—essentially outsourcing the heavy lifting to people who know how to meet F1's exacting standards.

India has one massive advantage: the circuit already exists and is built to FIA specifications. That's a huge leg up over countries starting from scratch.

But let's not pop champagne yet. F1 runs 24 races now, and everyone wants in—Qatar, Las Vegas, China, you name it. Hosting fees run anywhere from $20-60 million a year, and most circuits only survive because governments bankroll them, especially in the Middle East.

Formula 1 Management will need convincing that India isn't just commercially viable but committed for the long haul. And India's recent track record with major sporting events hasn't exactly been spotless.

Can India Actually Pull This Off?

Which brings us to the awkward question: can we actually pull this off? Because our recent hosting resume is... not great.

Here's the uncomfortable bit: organisational excellence isn't exactly our calling card lately. The 2026 India Open badminton tournament became infamous for all the wrong reasons—Danish star Anders Antonsen withdrew for the third year running, citing Delhi's pollution. Play was stopped twice when bird droppings hit the court. Players complained about air quality, hygiene issues, and one match even had a monkey in the stands.

The backlash carried echoes of our most uncomfortable sporting memory: the 2010 Commonwealth Games. Dirty athletes' villages, a collapsed footbridge days before opening, corruption scandals, and international media coverage that framed Delhi as chaotic and unprepared. It was meant to announce India's arrival as a global sporting host. Instead, it became a case study in how not to do it.

So…Are We Getting It Back?

Look, the appetite is there. The track exists. The government seems motivated. But bringing F1 back isn't just about cutting a cheque or fixing tax codes—it's about proving we can execute at a world-class level without the organizational disasters that have become our calling card.

Whether we can nail the execution? That's the real race we need to win first.