In the early 1990s, the
Chinese government began seeking to host an F1 race. After the
Zhuhai International Circuit was opened in 1996 in the city of
Zhuhai in
Guangdong Province, southern
China, a race there was provisionally added to the 1999 F1 World Championship calendar. However, the track failed to meet
FIA standard resulting in the race being cancelled. In 2002, it was announced that the management of the
Shanghai International Circuit, with assistance from the organizers of the
Macau Grand Prix, had signed a seven-year contract with
Formula One Management to host the Chinese Grand Prix from 2004 until 2011. 2010 came and went with no formal announcement of an extension to the initial seven-race deal struck in 2004. However, immediately after the 2010 Shanghai race
Bernie Ecclestone, who manages the contracts with the various circuits, said of the 2011 calendar, "We are not dropping anything. [It's] 20 races – getting ready for 25". It was only in February 2011 that a deal was agreed between F1 and the organisers of the Chinese round of the world championship. Reasons for the delay appear to have been over the fee paid to F1 to host the race. After racking up losses year after year, the organisers of the race refused to pay the fee required, reported to be amongst the highest paid to host an F1 race. F1 bosses appear to have reduced the fee and the new agreement to host an F1 race ran to 2017. In September 2017, a new three-year contract to host the race was announced, keeping the race on the calendar until 2020. In 2019 it hosted the 1000th round of the Formula One World Championship. The
2020 Grand Prix, scheduled for 19 April, was postponed and later cancelled due to the
COVID-19 pandemic. Plans for , and races were announced and later cancelled. The Grand Prix returned to the Formula One calendar in 2024. == Winners ==