The extensive, modern race track designed by German architect Hermann Tilke is about half an hour's drive south of the city of Kuala Lumpur.

Kuala Lumpur was founded in the middle of the jungle by tin miners in 1857. Under British rule, the Malay Sultanates formed the Federation of Malaya in 1896 with Kuala Lumpur as its capital city. In 1957 Kuala Lumpur became the capital of the newly independent country.

Kuala Lumpur translates as "muddy estuary" due to its location at the mouth of the rivers Gombak and Klang. "KL", as the city is generally referred to today, is the pulsating hub of modern Malaysia. The capital is also the country's biggest city with a population of around 1.5 million (52 percent Chinese, 39 percent Malay, 6 percent Indian, plus other minority groups) living in an area of 244 square kilometres. KL offers vibrant Asian culture alongside British colonial architecture and famous high-tech edifices such as the Petronas Twin Towers in the city's "Golden Triangle".

With their 88 storeys, the Petronas Twin Towers soar above the city skyline. They are the tallest twin towers and the seventh-highest structure in the world and home, among others, to the Petronas Philharmonic and Petronas Performing Arts Group.