F1 was due to race in Bahrain on April 12 and in Saudi Arabia on April 19.
Both countries have been struck during Iran’s response after the United States and Israel launched a wave of attacks on Iran.
Despite not knowing whether the conflict would be ongoing by the time their event dates roll around, a decision needed to be made imminently due to the logistics of when teams had to start sending freight to the Middle East for both events.
It is highly unlikely the races in the Middle East will be replaced, given the schedule at the back end of the year is tightly packed.
Without knowing when the conflict will end or whether there will be escalations in the conflict down the line, F1 does not want to be in a position where a championship is decided or influenced by a race being canceled at the end of the calendar.
That would mean the 2026 schedule being reduced from 24 to 22 races and a five-week void between the third round of the new season in Japan on March 29 and the Miami Grand Prix on May 3.
Speaking in Shanghai on Thursday ahead of this weekend’s Chinese Grand Prix, seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton expressed faith in F1 to make the right decision.
He said: “I know that [F1 CEO] Stefano [Domenicali] will do what is right for all of us and the sport.
“That is the great thing with having a great leader like him.”
PA contributed to this report.
