F1 Calendar Shock

Formula 1’s next race is still Miami on May 1-3, but the championship has gone dark for five weeks after Bahrain and Saudi Arabia were cancelled. (espn.com) The two scrapped rounds were scheduled for April 12 in Bahrain and April 19 in Jeddah, and Formula 1 said it would not add replacement events in April. The series confirmed the cancellations on March 14 after security and freight concerns tied to the war in Iran. (espn.com) That left the 2026 season stuck on three completed grands prix under the new rules before the pause began. ESPN’s updated calendar now lists a 22-race season, down from the original 24, with Miami as Round 4. (espn.com (espn.com)) The break has also turned the first month of the new regulations into a live policy debate. Teams, engine makers, Formula One Management and the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile spent April in meetings over how the 2026 cars deploy electrical energy during races. (fia.com) The 2026 package changed both the cars and the engines: Formula 1 says the new power units use a 50/50 split between internal-combustion and electrical power, while the chassis were redesigned to be lighter and more aerodynamic. Those changes were meant to reshape racing for several seasons, so problems seen in the first three rounds drew fast attention. (formula1.com (fia.com)) Drivers had complained that some races were becoming too focused on battery saving rather than sustained flat-out running. Sky Sports reported that the FIA’s response was aimed at reducing extreme energy-management scenarios and improving safety. (skysports.com) The FIA said on April 20 that all stakeholders agreed to refinements starting in Miami. The governing body said the changes include reducing the maximum electrical deployment in races from 350kW to 200kW, while keeping 350kW for qualifying, and increasing mandatory skid-block checks from Miami onward. (fia.com (formula1.com)) The FIA also said it can mandate a higher minimum ride height at circuits where teams are expected to run cars very low, a step tied to safety concerns after early-season running. Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff said before the decision that the sport should “act with a scalpel, not baseball bat,” reflecting the split between teams that wanted quick fixes and teams wary of overreacting. (fia.com (skysports.com)) Miami now carries more weight than a normal fourth round. It will be the first race after a five-week shutdown, the first event with the revised rules, and the first real test of whether Formula 1 can steady its new era after losing two races before April was over. (espn.com (fia.com))