Which of F1’s new races this year are likely to return on the 2021 calendar?

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Formula 1 passed the halfway mark of its truncated 2020 season midway through the Tuscan Grand Prix at Mugello. This was the first of several venues added to this year’s calendar which no one expected the series to visit 12 months ago.

It’s therefore timely to take stock of what the sport has achieved in the face of complications caused by Covid-19; to take a look at what F1 has learned – both the positives and negatives – from the first three sets of triple-headers making up nine (of eventual 17) rounds, and what can be applied.

That last set of statistic provides the first pointer: As proven by the Austrian and British doubles, it’s possible to stage back-to-backs at a single venue, but only where push comes to shove. Changing the tyre selections where possible created some variety, delivering different winners within each double set, but such ‘twinning’ should be a last resort.

Equally, although no rounds were staged on reversed layouts, a number of promoters are known to have investigated the feasibility of converting their venues into bi-directional circuits, and it is likely that during their next upgrades a number of facilities could – where feasible, of course – apply for Grade 1 licences in both directions, and alternate their races on an annual basis. Nothing like a bit of variety.

Antonio Giovinazzi, Alfa Romeo, Bahrain International Circuit
Bahrain could hold pre-season testing and first race
Similarly, although different layouts were considered by a number of circuits, only Bahrain’s second race, dubbed the “Sakhir Grand Prix”, will feature such a variation, using its novel ‘Outer’ layout. Thus, as with ‘reverse’ running, it is not beyond the realm of possibility that venues vary their layouts going forward. Teams may oppose such a move as they detest uncertainty, but F1 has been too predictable for too long.

That said, the entire sport – including all categories of fans, from petrolheads to casual consumers – must see that triple-headers are not the way forward. Not only are they debilitating for race and set-up crews but play havoc with domestic lives of F1 personnel at all levels. Add in fan fatigue and sponsor saturation, and it is abundantly clear such scheduling is acceptable under specific circumstances and should not become the norm.

By the same token, staging 17 rounds in the space of 24 weeks, an average of a race every 10 days, does not means F1 folk should submit to 25 races in 35 weeks – even if weekend formats are reduced to two days of track action, as will be experimented with at Imola. Keeping hectic schedules is well and good within similar time zones, but not across hemispheres. There are good reasons why F1’s head honchos don’t attend all rounds.

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Teams must also question whether it is necessary to fly over 150 personnel to grands prix when races under Covid have shown they can make do with 85, albeit with reduced marketing, media and hospitality contingents. Are 70 additional on-site heads really necessary, or could a number of previously considered ‘essential’ circuit activities be better (and more economically) covered from base?

Chase Carey, Spa-Francorchamps, 2020
Carey is hoping to pull off 22 races next year
On the plus side, the current crisis has re-opened dialogues between F1 and a number of circuits which had either ‘fallen’ off the calendar or never held a race. Not only are they talking, but the dialogue has resulted in more streamlined circuit approval processes. The result is that F1 now has solid reserve lists, with circuits ready to step in on an invitational basis at short notice should races be cancelled for whatever reason.

Of course, no-one wishes for another year like 2020 to revisit F1 – or any other walk of life, for that matter – but the fact is the epidemics are by their very nature extremely unpredictable. This time last year fans were planning annual holidays and family get-togethers around F1 calendars; currently they don’t know when or where next year’s F1 season will start or end.

On present evidence there is every reason to believe the 2021 F1 calendar will be disrupted in some way. Indeed, during a select media interview with FIA president Jean Todt in Mugello, the governing body’s consultant epidemiologist Eric Caumes added that “2021 will be like 2020” in terms of precautions to control the virus.

This largely chimes with F1 CEO/chairman Chase Carey’s prognosis in early August, when he warned of a requirement for “flexibility” during a call to investors: “We are planning a 2021 [F1 calendar] that looks like we would’ve expected, which probably will be a 22-race calendar, a calendar that probably starts and finishes about when our [usual] calendar does.

“We may make it so there’s a little more space in the front end of the calendar, and the second half a little busier. So we’ve got a little more flexibility built into it, but I think that’s probably a tweak to it, not a real restructuring.”

Note his words carefully, for they provide clues to next year. The take-away is that in August F1 planned for a 22-race schedule, one which is fundamentally familiar, albeit with added flexibility. Obviously, lessons learned from this season – including the wisdom of hosting the season opener on a far-off continent – has been applied during the construction of the next calendar, and even fixture lists beyond next season.

Carey’s words imply that the season will start in mid-March and finish at the end of November, give or take a week at either end. However he implied Albert Park in Melbourne is unlikely to stage the opener. Why so? The lead time required to construct the park circuit without guarantees that fans, whose proceeds are crucial to covering the annuals costs of constructing the circuit, will be permitted.

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Watch for crucial indicators when the Australian government issues guidelines for the Brisbane Masters and Australian Open tennis tournaments. Melbourne pays a premium to host F1’s curtain-raiser, but the word is that the circuit has requested a discount should its race not be able to play to packed stands, which would in turn hit F1’s income. Hence moves to delay the race in the hope that a later date will enable a full house.

Albert Park, Melbourne, 2020
F1 may have to visit Melbourne later than usual next year
Thus, the Australian Grand Prix is likely to form part of a set with Singapore and Japan later in the year. Any decision about spectators would need to fall by the end of December at the absolute latest to facilitate building for March, yet the calendar needs to be finalised by the FIA World Motor Sport Council in early December. Apart from this formality, delaying the schedule is grossly unfair on other venues and, of course, fans and the teams.

Therefore the season is likely to open in Bahrain, preceded by an official (three-day) pre-season test session, with cars and kit remaining in Sakhir until the race weekend. Thereafter the series is likely to head for Vietnam and China or – according to solid sources in the loop – find itself in Jeddah for a street event, massaged by F1’s biggest (by far) current sponsor Aramco, before travelling east for two races in Asia.

As revealed here, Brazil held a bargain basement contract which is unlikely to be renewed – certainly not for free – and thus F1 is seeking an alternate event for the slot, particularly as mooted replacement Rio de Janeiro has yet to build its circuit. Enter Jeddah as early substitute for a round at the under-construction Qiddiya entertainment city, which has been delayed by the pandemic.

However, given the need to construct a street circuit in record time under challenging circumstances the race could be delayed and twinned with Abu Dhabi in November – the more likely option – but either way our sources are bullish that a street race in Saudi will appear on F1’s 2021 calendar.

Talking of Vietnam, the 2020 edition of the race has not been officially cancelled although F1 talks of a ‘final 17-race calendar’ without Hanoi’s race. That suggests it is off the schedule but that some faceless suit tasked with breaking the news globally is reluctant (or fearful) to do so. Hopefully the penny (or, to use the local currency, dong) will soon drop.

After its return from Asia via Baku the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort on May 2nd is likely to be F1’s first stop in Europe, followed by either a race in Spain or a reserve event before Monaco’s race on May 23rd. The latter will only go ahead if spectators are permitted at the circuit on that particular date, which would need to be known before building commences in mid-March.

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Formula E’s race scheduled for May 8th also hangs in the balance, for Monegasque officials are insistent on spectator access on its preferred dates for both events respectively, and thus both championships need fall-back positions – so enter a reserve round in reasonable proximity. As this year has proven, a number of venues are willing to step into the breach provided the terms and conditions are right.

Max Verstappen, Red Bull, Interlagos, 2019
A return to Interlagos is in doubt
Thereafter the calendar is expected to follow much the same course as usual until Monza. There is talk that Istanbul wants a return on a permanent basis, so could replace any recalcitrant European rounds – Catalunya and Hockenheim beware – provided a sufficiently large cushion exists on both sides for travel purposes. Logically Turkey should be twinned with Russia after Italy’s race, if the former features next year, that is.

After an Australasian set – night race in Singapore, Suzuka’s round and Melbourne’s delayed race, in a sequence yet to be decided – F1 heads across the waters to North America for Austin and Mexico. Miami’s oft-mooted race is seemingly as far from reality as ever.

Then it is time for another Middle Eastern visit, with Jeddah preceding Abu Dhabi’s finale assuming Saudi’s maiden race is staged later in the season and not in April.

F1 commercial rights holder Liberty Media’s priority after a dismal 2020 – best estimates have revenues dropping 50% against budget – is to construct a 22-race calendar that maximises revenues for the teams and itself while maintaining flexibility combined with efficient logistics. This schedule ticks all boxes – particularly with the inclusion of big-paying Jeddah, which, though, rides on the back of a twinned Middle East race.

Possible 2021 F1 calendar

RoundCircuitCountry
1Bahrain International CircuitBahrain
2HanoiVietnam
3Shanghai International CircuitChina
4Baku City CircuitAzerbaijan
5ZandvoortNetherlands
6Circuit de CatalunyaSpain
7MonacoMonaco
8Circuit Gilles VilleneuveCanada
9Red Bull RingAustria
10Paul RicardFrance
11SilverstoneBritain
12HungaroringHungary
Summer break
13Spa-FrancorchampsBelgium
14MonzaItaly
15Sochi AutodromRussia
16SingaporeSingapore
17SuzukaJapan
18Albert ParkAustralia
19Circuit of the AmericasUSA
20Autodromo Hermanos RodriguezMexico
21JeddahSaudi Arabia
22Yas MarinaAbu Dhabi

Equally, Liberty has amassed a number of reserves – including Istanbul, Portimao and both German circuits – all which are ready to plug-and-play should there be drop-outs. In such eventualities there is sufficient leeway for contingency planning should any of the long-haul rounds find themselves under threat.

What about Mugello or Imola? The former was very much a one-off included this year only to celebrate Ferrari’s 1,000th grand prix, and made possible by dint of (very) limited attendances. Packing 60,000 spectators, mostly arriving by car, would stretch the local infrastructure beyond limits.

As for Imola, with Liberty targeting so-called “destination cities” and shying away from two races in compact countries, there is no room for sentiment. Better to be thankful that this quaint venue has made a temporary return this year, and fully savour the race when it happens in early November.

All in, 2021 marks a consolidation year for Liberty, one in which the technical and sporting regulations are being rolled over and a (much) reduced budget cap introduced, both aimed at reducing costs to ensure F1’s survival while providing a balanced mix of income, variety, entertainment and sustainability.

Next year’s calendar needs to follow that philosophy, or many sacrifices made by F1 personnel this year will have been in vain. The World Motor Sport Council meeting in December will prove whether Liberty succeeded in its objective, but the mere fact that F1 is bullishly targeting a 22-race calendar – including a debutant race – while Covid-19 continues to create chaos across the globe bears testimony to the sport’s robustness under their management.

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53 comments on “Which of F1’s new races this year are likely to return on the 2021 calendar?”

  1. It’s certainly going to be interesting after this season to see how fans and the F1 officialdom feel about some of the “legacy” or traditionally non-F1 tracks which have been used to save the season.

    Perhaps if focus is on “improving the show”, then some of these tracks could deserve the have their mothballs swept away to take priority over newer tracks which seem to serve as PR stunts to boost profiles of territories with dubious human rights policy.

    1. yet the calendar needs to be finalised by the FIA World Motor Sport Council in early December. Apart from this formality, delaying the schedule is grossly unfair on other venues and, of course, fans and the teams.

      Will they not agree to another exemption from this for next year? Unfair on venues, fans and teams is one way to look at it, but on the other hand we are still in the middle of a pandemic and being able to react to new developments will still be very important, and useful, next year.

  2. Potentially no more Interlagos?

    Despite taking part in Fan Voice, I do wonder if this sport listens to the fans at all.

    1. Interlagos is one of the best circuits out there, shame it won’t be on the calender

      1. But you’ll get another brutal dictatorship to replace it.

        1. @darryn it’s not exactly as if Brazil’s current government has a particularly clean record though, from the ongoing corruption probes into Bolsonaro’s family to his allies setting up mass disinformation campaigns to cover up the number of people who have died in Brazil due to covid-19 (Bolsonaro’s son being investigated in both instances).

          There are also the pieces of legislation that Bolsonaro’s government have introduced that actively roll back on protections for the civilian population, such as introducing deliberately vague “self protection” rules for the police that have basically given them carte blanche to use indiscriminate lethal force (the number of people being shot by the police rising 16% in the year after that rule was introduced), or the “provisional measures” which his government have introduced to suppress civil rights organisations that are protesting against corruption and abuses of power.

          In that sense, there are a number of areas in which Brazil could be said to be falling below the standards to which some circuits and nations are held. It has a government that is introducing measures that have the effect of repressing the local population and has a number of high ranking officials whom have been accused of widespread corruption, mixed with attempts to intimidate and manipulate the judiciary.

          Is that considered palatable enough to us because there are those who claim Interlagos “is one of the best circuits out there” and we are therefore prepared to overlook the less attractive side of the Brazilian authorities? At what point do the fans decide that the detracting aspects of a host are outweighed by the entertainment value of the venue they are racing at?

          1. To which you can add Bolsonaro’s government threatening to close down the Supreme Court and close Congress. Actually a threat, of course, to reinstall military dictatorship. Or a threat made to tame political opposition and legal procedures. Since the judges call his bluff, Bolsonaro has moderated his tone (if not his policies) but that is probably them waiting to see who gets elected in the US this year. Another crunch issue is whether Lula gets to run in the next presidential elections, which he’d certainly win. Expect big moves to stop that. But should Brazil be avoided or boycotted on that basis? No because there is widespread opposition to Bolsonaro, and leaving the country in isolation does little good. It’s also very questionable, TBH, if the US and UK are in a much better democratic state than Brazil.

          2. Brazil is “fine” as ever. Bolsonaro is just another president accused of corruption after Lula (whom was convicted but still roams free). You find accusations of members of the Supreme Court involved at corruption that accounts members of the Parliament as well. The cherry at the top, Covid situation became a haven for more corruption by the governors and alike over public funds. Citizens who disobeys restrictions are jailed whilst criminals are freed, both under the pretext of Covid.

            Regarding racing, Bolsonaro is keen to bring the GP to Rio de Janeiro since it’s his electoral College. No wonder popped out suspicions of corruption regarding the upcoming circuit. But if you take Brasilia for instance, Governor Agnelo Queiroz (under the wing of Lula and Rouseff) destroyed its race track under the excuse of bringing in Indycar. Of course investigations over corruption took place.

            You see, over the years you get right spectrum, left, centre, judicial system… Over all the time Interlagos was at the calendar, nothing has really changed. In the end no one cares, as long as one isn’t fighting for an agenda.

        2. Brazil is considered a “flawed democracy” by the Democracy Index, the same classification as the U.S.A., the former ranking 52nd and the latter 25th in the index. It’s fairs better than Hungary (55th), Mexico (73rd), Singapore (75th), Turkey (110th), Russia (134th), Vietnam (136th), U.A.E. (145th), Azerbaijan (146th), Bahrain (149th), China (153th), so in essence, only Australia, Canada, E.U. (excluding Hungary) , Japan and U.S. venues rank better. With this I’m not apologizing or minimizing the extremely serious social and economical issues in the Brazil, but even with a Trump’s a**-licking as a President for the last 3, 4 years, the country still enjoys more democracy than many F1 race venues.

    2. But you’ll get another Despotia GP in the desert, this time supported by the prince who likes to chop journalists into pieces, among other hobbies. S. Arabia is exactly what we needed, because that’s where the fans are, that’s where the history of the sport is, that’s the region F1’s never visited, oh and that’ll be the great place to broadcast that message about racial and gender equality, “we all race as one”. Surely no need to consider coming back to Mugello, some of the German tracks or Interlagos, nobody cares for that. We need a more hardcore version of UAE instead.

      1. Instead of F2 & F3 they will bring some criminals on to the pit straight and behead them for the crowds. Paradise.

        1. Don’t give them any ideas please! Those people would do it!

  3. I wonder how the Australian Grand Prix Corporation would feel about having to hold their two events in the same month, with MotoGP done traditionally in October. As someone who goes to both every year it’s a shame if the Aus GP is moved back to October but I’d rather that than not being able to go at all. I also fear that this move later in the season could be permanent.

    1. @milesy-jam It indeed would be permanently for the following reason: Logistics. A temporary track couldn’t hold a race at the tail-end of a season for one year and towards the beginning the year after, due to the dismantling process after the first one and the lead-time needed for the build-up towards the following year’s event, so the Australian GP couldn’t happen in September-October next year and March in 2022. Permanent tracks have the flexibility to suddenly jump from being a late-season event to being an early-season (examples of this are Malaysia, which had its race in October in 2000, but in March the following season and the 2015 Russian GP on October 11 with the 2016 event on May 1). Of course, Bahrain if and when it returns to being an early-season event after this presumably one-off case of being at the end.

      1. Another option would be to slot into the current Brazilian GP slot in November, that way being able to keep the circuit built for the 2022 season opener in March, and also not being too close to the MotoGP.

        1. @milesy-jam But the question is, could they keep all the temporary infrastructure in place during the intervening period when F1 isn’t in town? I have doubts about that.

  4. Portimão, Portugal.
    The fans and the F1 circuit deserve a track like that in such a beautifull place.

  5. Portimão, Portugal.

  6. Never has any article on this site had so many maybe’s, if’s and possibly’s. The only thing it is missing is a ‘pinch of salt’. LOL. The only surprising thing I didn’t see at the bottom of the article was a credit to Eddie Jordan; the font of all things absurd!

    1. “Eddie Jordan; the font of all things absurd!”

      Absolutely splendid!

  7. RE: Vietnam Cancellation (or lack thereof)

    It’s clear that the Vietnam GP organisers do not want to issue any refunds for race tickets purchased. I’m still waiting for my money to be returned and the silence is deafening…

    1. FYI error in table. Gilles Villeneuve circuit in Canada

      1. Sorry, clicked on wrong reply button

  8. So in short, let’s enjoy this year of decent circuits (Sochi aside) whilst we can.

  9. FYI error in table. Gilles Villeneuve circuit in Canada

    1. definitely not in spain besides it is spaiun, the real country. normal typos but quantity over quality.

  10. I would love to have Turkey back with a regular spot. Fantastic track.

  11. I’m motivated by the initial renderings and video imagery of the new Vietnam venue. Looks fast and lots of speedy areas.

    A close second has to be Zandvoort. Seeing the Modern F1 car in aggression there should be fascinating.

    Mugello the Best surprise in racing in many years. Too bad the access and community support Fails to grab a hold of the Gold Mine they sit on. We saw what could be and arguably could be the best new-old Racing sight on Earth.

    The Mecca or (its correct name?) location has yet to show itself and it’s features. Must be promising to move forward on the calendar with no previous knowledge of it.

    Seems like F1 is moving past some of it’s heritage race locations and has replaced them with “wanna be like” real race tracks.
    Too bad that It’s the exchange of money between F1 and Nations that jump starts the lucrative Grand Prix Series to come to your town.

    Is it possible to have an event on Antarctica if you got bucks. Formula One speaks money and are eager to meet investors with big Dreams.

    So why not on the parcel of land owned by many nations, and goes by the name of Antarctica
    That would become the very first “International Grand Prix of Antarctica”
    Pirelli could develop an all white tire that gradually turns dark grey as it wears out. Great idea. They will feature slicks and two versions of spiked tires with a short spike for moderate needs and a tall spike for ice storms. The sidewalls will be colored white, white white and whiter white.

    Why Not?

    F1 is that bold.

  12. An interesting article and lots of what-ifs, but should the Australian GP take place in September-October along with the Singapore and Japanese GPs, that would feel weird. Weirder than when Malaysia returned from the beginning of the seasons to the latter phases for 2016, or when China moved from being a late-season event to being an early-season one for 2009 to give two examples. Sochi’s two moves as well. I wouldn’t mind, though. I also would be happy if Bahrain were to become a fixture late-season event, although two from the Arabian Peninsula at the tail-end with one at the beginning would equally be nice. The initial writing about Jeddah in this article contradicts the earlier article a bit, although later clarified. As for the 2020 joker additions: Only one of the Mugello-Imola due could realistically be part of next year’s schedule as otherwise, a season closer to normal than this would also have three tracks in Italy, so only one of them if either. Portimao, Nurburgring, Istanbul Park, I also doubt all three would fit in. Furthermore, Baku had just moved away from April and was scheduled to have its race in June this year before COVID, so why should it immediately go back to a less ideal time of year temp-wise, although both the 2018 and 2019 weekends were warm. Still, a greater chance for fluctuation than in the summer and earlier in autumn.

  13. I thought Sochi won’t be there after 2020?

    1. @Dave Yes, there was that speculative news twelve months back ahead of last season’s event, but been quiet subsequently in this regard.

  14. Ask every venue to lower their prices across the board so that Fans can get a break in times of such despair from this Covis Period. We search for normal ways and normal times. Is it possible that Formula One to step up and Offer lower price structures for all races. Take it as advertising loses and show fans that Formula One can stand up and take more loss while building a stronger fan base for years to come. The profits are still down the road. The world needs help. Formula One has an opportunity. The pay off is worth it

  15. no brasil no imola turkey no hockhenim????????again stret race in asia i dont like new circiuts,

  16. I wonder what is the situation with Catalunya’s contract, it would be a no-brainer to have a race in Spain now that Alonso returns and Sainz will be at Ferrari. I really hope that we don’t lose Interlagos, it’s a fantastic circuit.

  17. The implied assertion by Liberty that a place like Jeddah is a more desirable destination or a ‘destination city’ ahead of warm, sunny places in Europe like Mugello, Imola or Portimao is quite frankly ludicrous. This is all about the money on offer and nothing else.

    This would be a great opportunity for Mr Domeniciali to get off to a good start by showing a bit of backbone and say that F1 is not going to adopt another middle-eastern country with a despotic regime. Just imagine the kudos and respect that would gain him from just about everyone.

    1. F1 world is too overcrowded with economic leeches who are more than happy with such destinations. It’s all just business.

  18. Firstly, it is a good article and it was interesting to read. I know that the contracts of Austrian GP, Monaco GP, Spanish GP, Brazil GP, Chinese GP will end at this year. Since Monaco GP already announced its planned F1 date, I can agree that Monaco GP will be at least on the provisional calendar for 2021. And also I can understand that the Brazil GP wouldn’t be on the 2021 calendar due to its money drought and the logistical calendar.

    But I don’t understand that how would the Austrian GP, Spanish GP and Chinese GP have place on the planned calendar at this page, since there aren’t any news about the renewal of these 3 GP’s contacts. And also I am doubted that Chinese GP will be on the 2021 calendar due to the prohibition of sporting events until 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics and the travel restrictions of China, maybe Shanghai would return to the F1 calendar from 2022 depend on the situation of pandemic. For Austrian GP, of course I won’t be surprised to see there in 2021, since the circuit Red Bull Ring is owned by Red Bull. But I am not sure about the Spanish GP’s situation, since they did 2020 contract by a last-minute deal, and their economic situation is worse now due to the pandemic. I think that maybe the organizators of Portimao, Nürburgring, Mugello would be more powerful than the organizators of Barcelona.

    About the places, due to the uncertainty of pandemic situation, organizing Australian GP on March 2021 won’t be possible, and it would be a good idea to shift Australian GP on October or postponing it to 2022. And also, I agree the opinions about the situation for Monaco GP. If Monaco GP won’t be organized on 2021 again, I hope that the replacement circuit for Monaco GP will be decided as soon as possible. But I don’t agree on some points. Also due to logistical reasons after pandemic, maybe I think that organizing US and Mexican GP after the Canadian GP will be more sense. And also I don’t understand that why will the Baku-Azerbaijan GP organized before the Netherlands GP, since they wanted to organize on later and they had place on June on the 2020 provisional calendar. Also due to the pandemic situation and Baku being as street circuit, I don’t believe that Azerbaijan GP will be organized on the early date of 2021, maybe it would be more sense to organize it before or after the Russian GP. I am curious about that the organization of 2021 calendar, and I hope that the Liberty Media would make 2021 calendar in more sense way.

    1. @bengibaris June is out of the question for both COTA and Mexico City for climatic reasons. The former because of potentially unfavorable heat and the latter because of a local rainy-season. Yes, I also hope that as a result of the COVID impact, the race schedule would be better logistically, although the North American ones are still difficult to have all three at the same time of year because of differences in climates. Other than these, yes. BTW, there was some news earlier on this site that the Chinese GP looks likely to stay in F1 until 2025 IIRC, and the ban on international sporting events covers the remainder of this year. Initially, I also thought it’d last until February 2022, but it’s until the end of this year.

      1. Maybe you should be right for COTA, but Mexico City hosted F1 races at the end of May or June between the years of 1988-1991; so in my opinion, it should have not been insensible to shift Mexican race to June in spite of the climate change. But anyway, due to the decreasing possibility of Brazilian GP for 2021 calendar and the abundant COVID cases in US and Mexico; maybe it would be more logical not to change the time of these races also for the 2021 calendar. And since Montreal is a semi-permanent street circuit, so maybe there would be a possibility of cancelling this race again due to its specific circuit characteristics (Sochi is also semi-permanent circuit, which organized its race successfully, but going to Sochi from Europe is much cheaper and easier) depend on the worsening situation of the pandemic in North America and logistical issues. Also, I am suspicious about the possibilities of organizing races in the full street circuits of Hanoi, Baku, and Monaco in the earlier times of 2021. We will see.

  19. The proposed calendar doesn’t look even remotely bad but for Christ’s sake, get rid of Barcelona for once. I can even put up with Paul Ricard as the ultimate borefest and Shanghai isn’t that great either, but Barcelona has to be the most boring, predictable and utterly soulless venue.

    1. EXACTLY! THANK YOU.

    2. At this point, if any of those were to be dropped out, I’d be elated.

  20. Nine races in 11 weeks were tough for more than one reason. For one, it seemed that all I was doing was updating my statistics database between the weekends and hardly keeping up with that! Shortened two-day weekends would be fine with me, but perhaps they could include 30-minutes warm up session on Sunday morning?

  21. Oh bloody hell is Paul Ricard still there? And Barcelona? Just race at Hockenheim after Austria instead, will ya? Also, if that circuit in SA at the end of the year gets completed in time and becomes the longest on the calendar, with those promised elevation changes etc (providing it delivers a blinder of a race), how’s it going to sit with Abu Dhabi, being the bore-fest that is, has been and always will be, only a week away? I’d be more than thrilled to have a couple less races to watch, just making sure that the boring circuits are gone thank you very much.

    1. @turbopeppino You seem to have mixed up something. This is about a street circuit in Jeddah that would come in as a stop-gap solution until the purpose-built one’s ready, which is the one referred to as longer than Spa. Jeddah is far away from Abu Dhabi, the distance between them by air is some 1,585.79 km, which is greater than the Austin-Mexico City distance, or the Spa-Monza one, or Hockenheim-Hungaroring to name a few. To Bahrain, it’s around the same as Austin-Mexico City, so not exactly ‘close’ to either. It has to be at the same time of year with one of them anyway for climatic reasons, so either the early-stages or the tail-end of a season, not in between.

  22. I suspect its still way too early to really plan out the 2021 calendar with any certainty as the next 3 – 6 months seem to be of huge concern in terms of Covid.

    At the moment, it is not possible to enter Australia, other than very limited numbers of returning Australian Citizens and those (including the cricket team that is touring the UK) must undergo mandatory quarantine for 14 days. That is unlikely to change for the foreseeable future so I wouldn’t count on Melbourne at all for 2021.

    That being said, I doubt that we’ll see all that many of the “one off” tracks re-appear as F1 will be working to extract as much from its existing venues as it can and will no doubt be pressuring each of them to commit to paying their regular fees.

    1. @dbradock
      This is my question too – how many races will be cancelled?
      What new hotspots will cause cancelations?
      Will there be any races in the Americas? The Canadian GP maybe?

  23. Why on Earth are we keeping the race in Barcelona?

    Come to that, sad to see Monaco back, didn’t miss that ‘race’ in the slightest this season. I understand it’s a great challenge for the drivers, but it’s not a race it’s more of a social event.

  24. I liked the 2020 circuit selection. Yes, I do miss Baku, Monza, and Austin, but… what a great selection of natural road circuits we’ve been treated to. Some of this stuff like Sochi is pretty damn forgettable.

    1. My Brain said “Suzuka” but my fingers heard “Monza”. Doh.

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