Formula 1 management is closely monitoring the situation in the Middle East ahead of the upcoming Bahrain Grand Prix (April 10–12) and the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix (April 17–19). Missile attacks continue to shake the wider region after U.S. and Israeli forces carried out strikes on Iran. Several countries have already closed their airspace.
The massive traveling Formula 1 caravan will head through the Middle East next week en route to Australia for the opening race of the new season. The final pre-season testing was carried out by all 11 teams in Bahrain, though some have already been forced to reroute their flights.
Formula 1 management is confident that the season-opening race in Melbourne, scheduled for March 8, will go ahead as planned. However, concerns remain regarding the fourth and fifth rounds of the season in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, set to take place on April 12 and April 19 respectively.
Our next three races will be in Australia, China, and Japan – not yet in the Middle East. As always, we are closely monitoring the situation and working in close cooperation with the relevant authorities.
Last summer, F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali already acknowledged that the sport had contingency plans in place due to geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, specifically for the final two races of last season in Qatar and Abu Dhabi, held on November 30 and one week later. Both events ultimately went ahead without any issues.
