JAKARTA - The war situation between the United States and Israel against Iran made Formula One (F1) make a decision not to hold the Bahrain and Saudi Arabia Grand Prix races which were supposed to take place in April 2026.
F1 confirmed through its official website that they made the decision after carefully evaluating the current situation in Iran and its widespread impact on other Western Asian countries.
"It has been confirmed today that the Bahrain and Saudi Arabia Grand Prix will not take place in April," read a statement on the F1 official website.
Several alternatives were actually considered regarding this decision, but F1 finally took a stance not to appoint another place to hold a replacement race for the two Grand Prix that were disturbed.
In addition to the main race, the Formula 2, Formula 3, and F1 Academy rounds will also not take place according to schedule. This decision was made after F1 consulted fully with the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) and the relevant promoters.
Formula 1 President and CEO Stefano Domenicali said it was a difficult but right decision for them to make because the situation was completely unsupportive for the race to take place.
"I would like to take this opportunity to thank the FIA and our incredible promoters for their full support and understanding," he said.
The races for the Bahrain and Saudi Arabia Grand Prix are scheduled to take place on April 12 and 19, 2026. However, both series were immediately threatened when the United States and Israel decided to attack Iran at the end of February 2026, which disrupted the international travel of the F1 staff for the opening Grand Prix in Australia.
The war involving the three countries automatically quickly spread to other countries, especially Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. Both countries are the location of US military assets so they are included in the target of retaliation attacks carried out by Iran.
The cancellation of the two series above makes the F1 race have a long break of about five weeks from the Japanese race held on March 29, 2026. After that, the race immediately jumps to the Miami series in the United States on May 3, 2026.
FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem said that they always prioritize the safety and well-being of the community and colleagues so that this decision is a very appropriate step.
"After careful consideration, we have made this decision with that responsibility as the top priority."
"We continue to hope for calm, security, and a rapid restoration of stability in the region," he said.
In addition to F1, the war in Iran also disrupted the 2026 MotoGP race schedule. The uncertain situation made the MotoGP party forced to shift their race schedule in Qatar to November 2026 and change several other schedules.
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