F1 Bahrain, Saudi Arabian GP cancellations set to be confirmed this weekend

Confirmation of the cancellations of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix is expected to come this weekend, according to sources in the Shanghai Formula 1 paddock.

The races have been in doubt since hostilities began in the Gulf region on 28 February, following joint US-Israel strikes on Iran.

Since then, the FIA and F1 have continued to monitor the situation in close co-operation with the Bahrain and Jeddah race promoters and authorities.

There are no plans to replace either event, leaving the 2026 world championship calendar at 22 events, with a gap of four free weekends between Japan and Miami.

While the safety of all concerned was obviously the priority, there are also always complex commercial considerations to be addressed around any F1 race cancellation.

It’s believed that the Saudi promoters were particularly keen to save their event, if at all possible.

With no signs of an improvement in the situation in the region and air travel still compromised, a decision had to be made in order to give teams and other stakeholders the opportunity to address logistical issues around freight and personnel travel, with thousands of flights and hotel rooms set to be cancelled.

A key deadline was that F1 freight was due to leave Japan after the Suzuka race and travel to Bahrain and then on to Jeddah.

It will now be diverted instead to Miami, and organising that is a significant undertaking.

Given the four-week gap it’s understood that there are discussions over whether it will go straight to Florida or have a pit stop en route in a climate controlled facility.

Teams may also have the option to independently fly their race chassis back to Europe for servicing at their factories before sending them on to Miami, a choice that would fall under the cost cap.

Meanwhile, the Formula 2 and Formula 3 freight is still in Melbourne, with both series due to race in Bahrain, and F2 also going on to Jeddah.

It’s not known if those lost junior formula races will be replaced, but given the contractual implications – with drivers having paid for their full seasons and so on – it is likely that will happen.

An added complication for F1 teams is that they all left sea freight at Sakhir after the Bahrain test, where all the garages are still fully set up.

Pirelli, McLaren and Mercedes, who stayed on in Bahrain for a tyre test that was cancelled when hostilities started, have left even more equipment behind.

Some sea freight garage equipment is also already in Jeddah, but is still in crates, and thus it will potentially be easier to ship it on elsewhere.

Teams typically leapfrog multiple sets of sea freight around the world, so they will have to make alternative arrangements for the races originally due to be served by the sets that are now stuck in the Middle East.

F1 race cancellations will have an impact on car development programmes

Teams will now have a whole month back at base to focus on R&D and process data from the first three races, with drivers now having plenty of time to undertake sim work.

They will also have to modify their upgrade design and production programmes, with new parts originally destined for Bahrain and Jeddah now delayed until Miami.

The loss of two races also means that the 1 June compression ratio test change due to be introduced in Monaco now comes after five races, instead of seven.

F1 team bosses have been reluctant to comment on the Bahrain/Jeddah situation and what the implications might be, other than expressing a trust in the FIA and F1 to make the right decisions.

“I think we follow the guidance of the FIA and F1, as we always do,” said Audi team principal Jonathan Wheatley.

“They’ve always led us in the right direction. Nobody’s going to compromise on anything that would put teams into an uncomfortable situation.

“One of the biggest sides of the business is the logistics side to it, not just parts but also people moving it around the world. Teams are so good at that. It’s just a bump in the road if something were to happen in that respect, you would just deal with it. I don’t see any real issues, to be honest.”