Motorsport in Africa has long been defined by moments rather than infrastructure.

From the enduring legacy of the Safari Rally to a growing grassroots culture across the continent, the appetite has always been there. As the team behind Suguroi Motor City put it, Africa’s beating heart of motorsport has always existed — the opportunity now is to ignite it through permanent, purpose-built infrastructure that supports participation, development and long-term growth.

Suguroi Motor City is designed to do exactly that.

Set across 489 acres in Laikipia, Kenya, the project represents one of the most ambitious motorsport developments in Sub-Saharan Africa. From the outset, the vision has been clear: to create more than just race tracks, but a world-class motorsport and leisure city — a living ecosystem that brings together adrenaline, ambition, community and African excellence.

That distinction matters.

Suguroi is not a circuit with supporting facilities. It is an integrated destination — combining circuit racing, drag, karting and off-road disciplines with hospitality, leisure and commercial elements to create a place that functions continuously. The project team describe it simply as more than a facility — an ecosystem — a hub where motorsport, technology, education and entertainment converge.

For Apex Circuit Design, the role is to translate that ambition into something that works in reality.

“This isn’t about building a track in isolation,”explains Jack Wheeler, Design Director at Apex. “At this scale, you’re designing how everything works together — how people arrive, how they move through the site, how different activities can run side by side, and how the whole project sustains itself over time.”

The scale of the opportunity is matched by the complexity of the engineering challenge.

Suguroi brings together a 4.5km main circuit, drag racing, karting, off-road experiences and driver training — each with fundamentally different technical requirements. Designing one circuit is a focused problem; designing multiple disciplines on a single site introduces a different level of complexity, where each element must perform independently without compromising the others.

“Each discipline demands something different,” Wheeler continues. “The challenge is making them coexist without conflict — in terms of safety, layout, access and long-term operation.”

That process is not simply about fitting elements into a masterplan. It is about prioritisation — understanding what drives the project commercially, operationally and experientially, and allowing those priorities to shape the layout from the outset. Every decision carries consequence, from access routes and safety zoning through to future expansion and day-to-day usability.

While the engineering challenge is significant, the context in which Suguroi is being developed is equally important.

This is not a mature European motorsport market. It is a region with deep heritage, but relatively limited permanent infrastructure — and a rapidly evolving audience. Suguroi’s vision reflects that shift, with a clear emphasis on building an inclusive, accessible and commercially viable ecosystem that can nurture grassroots talent into higher levels of competition.

That ambition is reinforced by Azar Anwar, Motorsport Director at Suguroi Motor City, who explains that he was drawn to the project by its long-term vision — not only to create a world-class facility, but to actively build and support the local motorsport industry.

That changes the design brief fundamentally.

“You’re not designing for an established audience,” Wheeler explains. “You’re helping to create one. That means accessibility matters just as much as performance. It needs to work for experienced drivers, but also for someone’s first time on track.”

This positioning distinguishes Suguroi from other recent global models.

In the Middle East, motorsport developments have often been driven by prestige and real estate integration. In China, they are increasingly tied to industrial strategy and large-scale economic planning. Suguroi represents a different approach — one built around participation, accessibility and long-term regional growth, underpinned by a belief that the project can set new benchmarks rather than follow existing templates.

That philosophy carries directly into the commercial model.

Suguroi is designed not as an event-led venue, but as a destination that functions continuously — combining motorsport with leisure, tourism and business activity. The intention is to create a place that delivers value every day, not just during headline events, supporting a broad range of users from enthusiasts and first-time drivers through to corporate and tourism audiences.

For Apex, that reinforces a core principle.

“The success of a project like this isn’t defined by one race weekend,” Wheeler says. “It’s about how it performs every day. Track days, driver training, corporate activity — all of that has to be designed in from the start.”

The masterplan reflects that thinking. Beyond the track, the site integrates hospitality, retail, residential and education elements — creating a layered environment where motorsport is the anchor, but not the entirety of the experience. It is, in the words of the Suguroi team, the curation of an experience that blends ambition, lifestyle and long-term opportunity into a single destination.

For Apex Circuit Design, Suguroi Motor City represents more than a single project. It is a case study in how motorsport infrastructure can evolve — from standalone venues into integrated environments that support industry, attract visitors and contribute to regional development.

“If this works as intended,” Wheeler concludes, “it won’t just host motorsport — it will help grow it.”

In that sense, Suguroi Motor City is not just a destination. It is a starting point.