Formula 1
No replacement for Russian GP as F1 schedule stays at 22 races
Formula 1 has opted not to replace the cancelled Russian Grand Prix with a new event on September 25, leaving the 2022 calendar at 22 races.
Adam Cooper
Edited: May 18, 2022, 1:08 PM
Copy link
Share on Viber
The decision creates a gap of two free weekends between the end of the European season at Monza on September 11, and the start of the run of six flyaway races in Singapore on October 2.
The Sochi event was cancelled, along with the event’s ongoing contract, shortly after the Russian attack on Ukraine began.
F1 immediately began looking for alternative venues in a bid to keep this year’s total at 23 events.
One early contender was Qatar. The country hosted a race last year at the Doha track, and will return to the schedule in 2023. It had planned to skip this year due to its commitment to the FIFA World Cup.
It was thought that the September date would be early enough to avoid a clash with preparations for the football tournament, but there were concerns about the extreme heat and the potential impact on the crowd.
Over the Melbourne weekend the possibility of a second race in Singapore emerged, to precede the traditional grand prix by a week and possibly be held at an earlier time of day.
There were also potential candidates in Europe, with Hockenheim offering to host the return of the German GP.
However, logistical issues mean that it was impossible for the F1 circus to transfer straight from a European venue to Singapore.
The key to any deal was the financing. F1 is in a very different situation to the past two years, when some venues had cheap or even free deals in a bid to keep up the number of races.
Given the general level of inflation worldwide and dramatic rises in freight costs, a new race would have had to make financial sense for both the teams and for F1 itself.
In the end none of the options fitted the bill, and F1 decided not to run a 23rd race.
The confirmation will be well received by the teams, who are facing the challenge of keeping below the budget cap while developing their brand new cars in the context of what will still be a hectic schedule.
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Is F1 heading for a budget cap showdown over Red Bull/Ferrari development war?
Next article Andretti wants to give American drivers "legitimate shot" in F1
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Adam Cooper
RB: Tsunoda “mentally on a different level” in 2024
Formula 1
Formula 1
Japanese GP
Apr 10, 2024
RB: Tsunoda “mentally on a different level” in 2024
Andretti planning F2 and F3 entries to promote US talent to F1 team
Formula 1
Formula 1 Apr 10, 2024
Andretti planning F2 and F3 entries to promote US talent to F1 team
Andretti F1 team formally opens new Silverstone facility
Formula 1
Formula 1 Apr 10, 2024
Andretti F1 team formally opens new Silverstone facility
Latest news
"It's horribly painful" - Williams drops 2026 car upgrades to benefit 2027
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Sao Paulo GP
1 h
"It's horribly painful" - Williams drops 2026 car upgrades to benefit 2027
Iker Lecuona felt significant differences between Ducati's GP25 and GP26
MotoGP
MGP MotoGP
Qatar GP
2 h
Iker Lecuona felt significant differences between Ducati's GP25 and GP26
The Kimi Antonelli you don't know: Inside the Mercedes garage with F1's new world champion
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Mexican GP
3 h
The Kimi Antonelli you don't know: Inside the Mercedes garage with F1's new world champion
Feature
Discover prime content
Top 10 F1 cars of the 1970s
Formula 1
By Kevin Turner
Top 10 F1 cars of the 1970s
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe