Formula One on Thursday announced a 10-year extension with the Australian Grand Prix, an agreement that will see the racing event being held at Melbourne till 2035.

Under the new contract extension, the organisers have agreed to upgrade the paddock and pit lane. Additionally, the new contract will also see Formula 2 and Formula 3 take place at the Albert Park Circuit in Melbourne for the first time.

“The Australian Grand Prix has never been bigger, with more than 419,000 people flocking to Albert Park for this year’s race,” announced Martin Pakula, minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events for the Victorian Government.

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“We know how important this event is to our economy and that’s why we’ve delivered the longest extension for the race since it has been held in Melbourne,” the 53-year-old minister added.

Formula One president Stefano Domenicali also expressed his delight at the extension, saying, “The race has always been a favorite for the fans, drivers and the teams and Melbourne is an incredible and vibrant international city that is a perfect match for our sport.”

“This year we saw huge crowds and passionate fans at the Grand Prix, and we are very excited by the future in Australia as our sport continues to grow,” the F1 chief further said.

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The Albert Park Circuit has hosted F1 races since 1996, prior to which the event was held in Adelaide. However, F1 events in 2020 and 2021 were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

When F1 returned to Melbourne in April 2022, it attracted the largest three-day crowd for a weekend sporting event in Australian history.

In addition to extending its contract with the Australian Grand Prix, Formula One has already added Qatar and Las Vegas to its roster for 2023, while talks are underway with the relevant authorities in South Africa about adding the Kyalami circuit near Johannesburg to next year’s schedule as well.