Overview
- Reports published Wednesday say F1 and the FIA are working to reinsert one or both April cancellations from Bahrain and Saudi Arabia this year under strong financial pressure from Gulf promoters and sponsors.
- The leading plan places Bahrain on October 2–4 between the Azerbaijan and Singapore rounds, with a second makeup race considered by mid-December.
- Abu Dhabi holds a contract to be the season finale, which complicates any bid to push another race into December.
- FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem says human safety comes first and points to Istanbul as a 2026 fallback if the circuit finishes its FIA homologation process.
- Adding races would squeeze the fall into as many as 11 events in 16 weeks across Asia and the Americas, which would strain team crews and long‑haul freight logistics.