Businessman MK Malefane wants to stage a Wakanda City Grand Prix in the Eastern Cape, but is there merit for this “multi-billion-dollar” plan?
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Following news of extensive conversations between Formula One Management (FOM), the Kyalami Circuit’s management team, and South African Minister of Sports, Arts, and Culture, Gayton McKenzie, around South Africa’s potential inclusion on the 2027 Formula 1 calendar, the Wakanda Smart Cities Development Consortium voiced their displeasure on the matter.
Related: Gayton McKenzie’s F1 Dream: Could Kyalami Host In 2027?
The Wakanda Consortium is a body led by MK Malefane, aiming to bring F1 back to South Africa, particularly the Eastern Cape. Malefane, a seasoned businessman who, at some point in his career, also stood in aide of Winnie Mandela, believes that the Eastern Cape should be considered to host the prestigious sport. If anything, his plans and visions are ambitious, with a “multi-billion-dollar” project earmarked to have the region ready by 2027. As a reminder, Grand Prix racing was hosted at the East London Grand Prix circuit in South Africa’s formative years being involved with the motorsport, before finding its home at the Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit, which has long stood as the country’s premier motorsport facility.
Speaking to Junaid Samsodien, Malefane said:
“Wakanda City is a multi-billion-dollar project. We have all the funds in place, not only to commence with development, but to also build the state-of-the-art circuit and run a Formula 1 Grand Prix to the highest international standards.”
The project has yet to get underway, but Malefane does not believe that it is receiving sufficient support from the South African government in the bidding process.
South Africa’s F1 bid
Over the last few years, talks of F1 returning to Africa gained substantial traction, with the Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit in Johannesburg earmarked as the potential host venue. F1 CEO, Stefano Domenicali, had met with several stakeholders to assess and discuss the venue’s return to the F1 calendar, with the latest talks revolving around 2027.
While Kyalami is making considerable progress and efforts to ensure the sport’s return, countries like Rwanda and Morocco have also shown interest, bidding to host F1. Locally, talks of an F1 race in Cape Town fell through, with Kyalami emerging as the primary contender. But Malefane’s dream to bring F1 back to the Eastern Cape is not being taken with a lot of seriousness. Part of his bid is to turn the Couga region into a Monaco-esque venue.
Related: R177 M Worth of Upgrades Earmarked for Kyalami in 2027 F1 Race Hopes
Samsodien noted from his conversation with Malefane:
“The Wakanda City South African Grand Prix bid is the centrepiece of the future smart city in the Eastern Cape. Styled on the likes of Dubai, Singapore, and Monaco, Wakanda will be developed on an idyllic 20 000-hectare beachfront site near (the) Sunday’s River. It will comprise Ferrari and Safari-themed parks, Hollywood and Disney-type movie studios and a marina lagoon resort in typical African style. And it will be home to Formula 1 and the Grand Prix, as much as it will be a hub of local South African motor racing. Adjacent to another Eastern Cape success story in the Couga Port and Industrial Zone with all their amenities supporting infrastructure, including an international airport, a cruise liner terminal and a superyacht basin, a Wakanda City racetrack ticks all the boxes, including Formula 1’s penchant for street circuits, as the ideal venue for a future South African Grand Prix.”
Immediate issue
While it has come to CAR’s attention that Malefane is not too happy with McKenzie and Gauteng premier Andrek “Panyaza” Lesufi’s visits to Kyalami, it must be understood that the Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit is an established venue already hosting FIA Grade 2 events. In October 2024, the Circuit’s owner and management team committed to R177 million worth of improvements to the facilities – including track upgrades – to bring the venue into FIA Grade 1 territory.
A bill the team will foot themselves, with no financial input from South Africa’s government.
Yes, the Eastern Cape is F1’s spiritual African home, having hosted the sport between 1934 and 1966, but the province is in dire straits, with unemployment and poor living conditions running rampant throughout. Though it may once have been a province of prominence, it is the poorest of all nine provinces in South Africa today. According to Operation Hunger, 4.3 million people in the Eastern Cape are of working age, with about 1 million unemployed.
Malefane’s Wakanda City may hold promise to uplift the region, but it does so in theory. A “multi-billion-dollar” project easily converts to more Rands than there is sand on the beach, and what guarantees are there that the project will be brought to completion, especially in a province ripe with corruption?
Corruption Watch noted in a 2022 article:
“In the 10 years of its existence, Corruption Watch has worked on scores of corruption reports coming from the Eastern Cape (EC). Mismanagement and corruption are virtually the order of the day, and there seems to be no end to the shenanigans. […] The nature of non-response to queries related to corruption and implication of public officials in the EC leaves the question of whether the poverty-stricken province is willing to dig itself out of this colossal hole. Poor financial management means that citizens are denied critical services that can help sustain and improve their lives, but for now, that is merely business as usual in the Eastern Cape.”
As things stand, the Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit is the African continent’s best hope – and chance – to host an F1 race. Unlike Wakanda, Rwanda, and Morocco, the facilities are already in place, and the R177m is a fraction of the costs any of the three “candidates” require to just begin.
Charlen Raymond
www.carmag.co.za
