Bahrain & Saudi GPs could return this year in late F1 calendar swap

Practice start during Bahrain testing — Photo: © IMAGO

F1 News & Gossip

Bahrain & Saudi GPs could return this year in late F1 calendar swap

Both of April's races were cancelled by F1

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Sunday 10 May 2026 15:27

The Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix could be set for a return to the 2026 F1 calendar, despite being cancelled earlier in the year.

Both races had previously been scheduled for April, but were cancelled because of the war in the Middle East, meaning F1 had a five-week spring break in the season prior to the Miami GP last weekend.

F1's cancellations have left the season as a 22-race season, two fewer than the 24 events that we have become accustomed to in the past couple of years.

Article continues under video

Following the release of F1 rights holder Liberty Media's first quarter earnings - in which they saw a 53 per cent increase in revenue specifically from F1 compared to this time in 2025 - CEO Derek Chang hinted that there could be a possibility to reschedule at least one of the races, while also expressing that the wellbeing of F1 team members and paddock personnel comes first.

Reports in Italian media suggested that both races could be shoehorned in near the end of the season, creating an unprecedented year-ending quadruple-header.

GPFans understands that F1 are actively exploring options to add the races back into the calendar, and are monitoring the situation in the Middle East, but that the already condensed nature of the calendar towards the end of the season make the quadruple-header reports implausible.

The Sunday Times are reporting that the Bahrain GP is the much more likely of the two to be rescheduled, and that the first weekend in October could be a potential spot for it to slide into the calendar.

That would place it in between the Azerbaijan and Singapore Grands Prix, creating a triple-header.

F1's calendar headache

Given Liberty Media's positive first quarter financial results, you can understand why they'd be keen to make sure this season is a 23 or 24-race season, rather than the currently scheduled 22.

But Liberty, F1 and the FIA are resolute in their people first approach, not only ensuring that the venues are 100 per cent safe for teams, paddock personnel and fans to travel to, but also trying to prevent burnout for the human beings in the paddock with a tight schedule already in place for September-December.

While the cancellations have altered the number of championship points available to teams and drivers this year, they have also altered the sporting regulations when it comes to power unit rules.

Earlier this week, it was announced that the Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities (ADUO) periods that were set out by the FIA before the start of the season would be altered due to the two race cancellations.

ADUO is designed to help power unit manufacturers who have struggled to develop a reliable, fast engine during the 2026 regulation changes, giving them time to bring upgrades to their power units.

The three periods were initially meant to fall after races six, 12 and 18 in the schedule.

But now, as a result of race six being further in the future than planned due to the two race cancellations, the FIA have tweaked their regulations to state that the first ADUO period will now take place after race five (the Canadian Grand Prix later this month).

The second ADUO period will now be after the 11th race weekend (Hungary), while the third and final period will be after race 18 (Mexico).

F1 Bahrain Grand Prix Saudi Arabian Grand Prix