The Formula 1 has been hit with a month-long hiatus. The series has faced an unexpected halt, and the last race that took place was the Japanese GP on March 29, which was won by Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli. There were two races scheduled to take place in April, but neither of them will take place this month.
The Formula 1 and its governing body had called off the Bahrain GP and the Saudi Arabia GP last month due to safety concerns amidst the Middle East war. The announcement was made on March 14, just a month before the Bahrain GP, which was scheduled to take place on April 12. The Saudi Arabian GP was set to take place today, April 19. But both the races were called off.
F1 body confirmed the development
The F1 body had confirmed that the races will not take place in April. "Due to the ongoing situation in the Middle East region, the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix will not take place in April," F1 said. "While several alternatives were considered, it was ultimately decided that no substitutions would be made in April.
"While this was a difficult decision to take, it is unfortunately the right one at this stage considering the current situation in the Middle East," said Stefano Domenicali, president and CEO of F1.
FIA did not rule out the rescheduling possibility
Meanwhile, the FIA did not explicitly rule out rescheduling the races. "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."
Meanwhile, rescheduling the races is not a practical option, considering the already packed F1 calendar. The races are tightly packed, and rescheduling them to a later point will cause major disruptions to the other races. While the US and Iran had agreed on a two-week ceasefire on April 8, the F1 body had already called off the races in April.
When is the next F1 race?
The cancellation meant that the series witnessed a 35-day break. The last race took place on March 29, and the next one will be held on May 4 in Miami.
