| | | | At a ceremony to mark the commencement of work on the track, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said that bringing Formula One racing to Turkey would result in both improving Turkey’s profile and generate much needed income.
“We expect serious income from this project,” Erdoan said. “We have set aside $27 million for it.”
The Turkish government has guaranteed to meet the costs of running the event, estimated at more than $13 million per year, with the first race set to be staged in Istanbul in 2005. The circuit is being built near the site of the city’s second airport, on the Asian side of Istanbul. | |
