F1 Pauses After Cancellations
Formula 1 canceled both the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix, producing an unexpected five‑week break in the season and dropping the calendar from 24 to 22 races. ( ) Reports attributed the cancellations to the war in Iran, and analysts noted the pause gives teams extra development time under the new regulations. ( ) Motorsport commentary added that Ferrari‑powered cars have been gaining at the start under the 2026 rules while Mercedes has slipped back. (motorsport.com)
Formula 1’s next race is not until Miami on May 1-3 after the series called off April rounds in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. (formula1.com) (fia.com) Formula 1 and the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile announced on March 14 that both Gulf races would not take place in April because of “the ongoing situation in the Middle East region.” The decision also wiped out the scheduled Formula 2, Formula 3 and F1 Academy weekends in Bahrain and Jeddah. (formula1.com) (fia.com) The original 2026 championship had 24 races, starting in Australia on March 6-8 and ending in Abu Dhabi on December 4-6. After the cancellations, the amended calendar approved by the World Motor Sport Council on March 26 lists 22 rounds, with a five-week gap between Japan on March 27-29 and Miami on May 1-3. (fia.com 1) (fia.com 2) (skysports.com) Bahrain and Saudi Arabia had been moved to April in the first place because Ramadan falls across February and March in 2026. That scheduling logic disappeared when the races themselves were removed. (formula1.com) (fia.com) The pause lands in the first season of Formula 1’s new rules, which changed the cars, the power units and the fuel. Teams now have five extra weeks without race weekends to bring upgrades, run simulations and rework setups before the championship resumes in Florida. (fia.com) (racefans.net) Race starts have become one of the biggest early storylines under those 2026 rules. Motorsport.com reported after the opening three rounds that Ferrari-powered cars had been gaining places off the line, while Mercedes had been losing ground and pushing for another review of the starting procedure. (motorsport.com 1) (motorsport.com 2) The results before the break show how open the reset has been. Andrea Kimi Antonelli won in Japan to become Formula 1’s youngest championship leader, and the official standings page lists Mercedes driver George Russell and Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc among the early front-runners. (fia.com) (formula1.com) Stefano Domenicali, Formula 1’s president and chief executive, said in the cancellation announcement that the series considered alternatives but chose not to replace the two April events. That leaves Miami as the restart point for a season that suddenly has less racing and more development time than anyone expected in March. (formula1.com)
