The former Autosport editor and veteran F1 journalist said a New Zealand F1 race, potentially paired with Australia as a season-opening double-header, would be a natural fit for the modern sport.
“I’d love to see one in New Zealand to go as a double header with one in Australia,” he told Speedcafe.
“That would just be a really great way to start the season.”
Jones’ comments come as he releases an updated edition of his book F1 Racing: The Ultimate Companion, refreshed to celebrate Formula 1’s recent 75th anniversary.
“Thinking within this book, of course, I’d written about New Zealand producing Bruce McLaren, Denny Hulme, etc., but they’ve never had a grand prix circuit,” he added.
“But they’re a country that richly deserves one with the amount that it’s put in and punching above its weight.
“I mean, Australia had to wait until the mid-80s to get a world championship grand prix, despite the history of the grand prix going back to the 20s as it dotted around the country.”
The book takes a global view of the sport, documenting every country to have produced an F1 driver or hosted a grand prix, while charting the evolution of circuits, cultures and careers that shaped the championship.
At the heart of the project is Jones’ long-held belief that circuits are an underappreciated pillar of F1’s story.
“I love writing about circuits, because I find them almost a forgotten part of the whole sort of Formula 1 equation,” he said.
“People talk about the drivers, the teams, the characters, the cars, to an extent, but it’s a stage.
“And there’s a stage, in the case of many circuits, that has been going for decades, and you think about the epic races.
“And then I started spreading the net. I’m quite completionist about things.”
Rather than focusing only on traditional F1 strongholds, Jones deliberately broadened the scope.
“The book spans established grand prix nations, countries that produced world champions without hosting races, and regions that hosted grands prix without ever fielding drivers,” Jones explained.
“What we decided in this book was you could do the obvious ones, a circuit in Germany, Britain, France, the States, Italy, etc. But I thought, let’s do all of them.
“And then I thought, let’s do all of the circuits. Circuits that have never had a grand prix. And then I thought, well, hold on, let’s do more than this.
“Where did the drivers come from? So again, if you’re from those sort of five nations, in particular, you’ve got the circuits, you’ve got the teams, you’ve got the world champions.
“Then throw in the curve ball. Finland. How many people know of any circuits in Finland, but look at the drivers they’ve produced?
“I felt it was important to sort of talk a little about the circuits where they would have cut their teeth before they necessarily had to sort of leave their shores and find their form.”
That historical context extends deep into F1’s early years, when road circuits and extreme layouts were common and safety considerations were vastly different to today.
One image in the book of particular note depicts Juan Manuel Fangio racing a Maserati 250F at the 1957 Pescara Grand Prix, on a vast triangular road circuit winding through Italian villages.
“I want people to understand that was part of racing in the 50s,” Jones explained.
“That’s where Formula 1 came from.”
The evolution of iconic venues also plays a central role, particularly circuits such as Spa-Francorchamps, where modern layouts bear little resemblance to their original forms.
“Modern fans would only know the circuit as it is, but anyone with a little bit of research finds it used to continue up the hill after going through Eau Rouge and Raidillon, up the Kemmel Straight it didn’t turn right,” he said.
“It actually went over the top of the hill down into next valley, arching to the left.
“Imagine that with no barriers, just pine trees on either side dropping down to the right-hand side. And then you’ve got to think about it, and the fact that the circuit in the early 1970s had an average lap speed of 151 miles an hour.
“It’s gobsmacking.”
Jones also traces the often-difficult paths drivers took to reach F1, particularly those forced to leave home early in pursuit of opportunity.
He recalled Mark Webber’s formative years in Europe, scraping together funding and relying on personal support to stay afloat.
“I remember him coming up to the UK and coming into our old school offices in the 90s when he was doing Formula Ford, and it was hand to mouth,” he explained.
“But he made the big push. He got some great assistance, you know, David Campese, helping him back in the day. Again, every little push helped Mark.
“The epic human being that he is made it work.”
While the book is rich in historical detail, Jones said accessibility was a key goal — striking a balance between educating newer fans and rewarding long-time followers.
“The driving force was to do something that would help people who’ve come to Formula 1 recently to understand more about the past, because I think you understand something much better if you know what went before it,” he said.
“But also, at the same time, to satisfy the sort of desires of people who have been following it for decades.
“And pleasingly, it seems to be doing that.”
Jones’ global travels for research and commentary also shaped the book, with lesser-known circuits leaving lasting impressions on him, as well as several which still form the modern F1 calendar.
Japanese venue Sugo, France’s Dijon-Prenois, Brazil’s Interlagos, and Italy’s Monza all stand out to him among his favourites he has visited for their elevation changes, atmosphere and sense of history.
“You go there and it resonates with history, whereas you can go somewhere else that’s been created for the sport in the last handful of years and it doesn’t have that,” Jones explained.
“I challenge anyone to go in through the gates at Monza and not feel that history.”
It is that sense of history — and a belief that F1 should continue to reflect it — that underpins Jones’ call for a broader geographic spread of grands prix, including a long-overdue return to regions like Africa and a first-ever visit to New Zealand.
For Jones, a permanent circuit such as Hampton Downs would make the most sense, but he concedes the idea remains aspirational for now.
“They might have to do a street circuit, but those come at huge expense and only well-heeled governments can do that,” Jones conceded.
“I think it has to go to a permanent circuit. I suppose Hampton Downs is probably the pick of the pack, because also that’s close enough to a centre of population. Taupo, not so much, lovely little circuit as it is.
“I don’t know, but it’s just a whim. It’s just a thought.”
Published by Michael O’Mara Books, F1 Racing: The Ultimate Companion is available now.
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