Formula 1 confirmed on Saturday that April’s races n Bahrain and Saudi Arabia have be cancelled due to the war in Iran.
The Bahrain Grand Prix was set for April 12, and the race in Saudi Arabia for April 19, but both have been removed from the calendar, reducing it to a 22-event season.
A statement from F1 read: “It has been confirmed today that, after careful evaluations, due to the ongoing situation in the Middle East region, the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix will not take place in April.
“While several alternatives were considered, it was ultimately decided that no substitutions will be made in April. The FIA Formula 2, FIA Formula 3 and F1 Academy rounds will also not take place during their scheduled times. The decision has been taken in full consultation with Formula One Group, local promoters and our Member Clubs in the region.”
Mohammed Ben Sulayem, FIA President, said: “The FIA will always place the safety and wellbeing of our community and colleagues first. After careful consideration, we have taken this decision with that responsibility firmly in mind.
“We continue to hope for calm, safety and a swift return to stability in the region, and my thoughts remain with all those affected by these recent events. Bahrain and Saudi Arabia are incredibly important to the ecosystem of our racing season, and I look forward to returning to both as soon as circumstances allow.
“My sincere thanks to the promoters, our partners, and our colleagues across the championship for the collaborative and constructive approach that has led to this decision.”
Both nations have been embroiled in the war between Iran and the United States and Israel.
The logistics for F1 to move its freight around the world meant a decision was needed quickly about whether to go racing in Bahrain and Saudi.
Sources have told ESPN that the call to cancel Bahrain was straightforward, but Saudi’s race was less so.
The Saudis were pushing for their race to go ahead as normal but F1 did not want to risk a situation where an escalation closer to the race took place with freight and personnel already in the country.
The Saudi Arabian GP infamously went ahead in 2022 despite a missile attack on a nearby Aramco oil depot by Yemen’s Houthi rebels while a practice session was taking place at the circuit.
On that occasion, drivers did not want to continue but were convinced to go ahead by F1 and the Saudi race organisers after a four-hour meeting.
While that was an attack which occurred without warning during a race weekend already underway, F1 knew with the existing situation in Iran the safety risks were too high to go back to Saudi this time around.
ESPN’s Nate Saunders and PA contributed to this report.
