F1 has decided to remove the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix from the calendar in April, which has resulted in a major change to the 2026 calendar following the escalation of the war in the Middle East region.
It has been decided to hold the Bahrain Grand Prix on April 12, 2026, and the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in Jeddah on April 19, 2026 but it has been decided to remove the Grands Prix from the calendar.
It was only a matter of time before the decision was taken to remove the Grands Prix from the calendar, given the escalation of the war in the region, which has resulted in the Gulf region being impacted by the war following the attacks by the US and Israel on Iran.
Airport closures have resulted in difficulties in the region. Mohammed Ben Sulayem, president of the FIA stated: “The FIA will always place the safety and wellbeing of our community and colleagues first.”
In the midst of a season that was supposed to travel swiftly through Asia and the Gulf before arriving in North America, this results in an unanticipated five week gap.
For the teams, it may mean an opportunity to fine tune cars under the new regulations.
But for F1, it is also a reminder of how the global sporting calendar is at the mercy of events beyond the track.
The events of Bahrain and Saudi Arabia are crucial to the F1 business model. The sport has been here before.
In 2011, the Bahrain GP was cancelled due to civil unrest. The Saudi GP was held in 2022 despite an attack on an oil facility near the Jeddah circuit.
The attack sparked concerns over safety. F1 has not officially cancelled the events, but the language used by the F1 officials implies that the focus is on stability rather than making it up as you go along.
