F1 races to skip Istanbul after prime minister's decision

ISTANBUL

REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan chose not to approve the Formula 1 deal that would have landed the race in Istanbul in 2013, daily Hürriyet has reported.
 
The Turkish Grand Prix is not going to happen, according to the F1 boss, Bernie Ecclestone, due to a lack of agreement on the annual cost.
 
The project, set to cost Turkey around 20 million dollars in total, was supposed to receive 13 million dollars of state funding.
 
Erdoğan, however, did not give his approval, and the project fell apart.
 
The F1 races will have a 19-race calendar this year.