The biggest problem with the 2027 F1 schedule (isn't the Monaco sprint race)

Domenicali reageert op F1-kalender van 2027: 'Meer intensiteit en drama' — Photo: © IMAGO

F1 2027

The biggest problem with the 2027 F1 schedule (isn't the Monaco sprint race)

New schedule, same problems

Chris Deeley Editor

Experienced sports writer covering F1 and other motorsports since 2023

Friday 18 September 2026 10:55

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Good news everyone, the F1 calendar is out for 2027!

Bad news everyone, it appears to be dragging a tidal wave of asterisks in its wake!

As of Wednesday, September 16th we know that the 2027 F1 season will start on March 12th in Bahrain, with FP1 and a sprint qualifying session on the Friday to kick things off.

Probably.

The problem with that is, Bahrain can't host a grand prix right now. You can tell, because the 2026 edition of the race is going to be held next month...in Malaysia. You will note that among Malaysia's many characteristics is 'located about 6,000km away from Bahrain'.

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Brief but necessary aside about the sprint races on the 2027 F1 calendar

Rubbish, predictable, hilarious. Putting a sprint race in Monaco, a circuit which famously needs pitstops for even the idea of overtaking to arise, is bone-headed. Doing it fairly explicitly so that you can hold an extra qualifying session on a Friday afternoon when most of your audience is either at work or school is laughable.

The increase from six sprints to ten is just another sign of the contentification of F1. Never mind that practice sessions help teams dial in their cars and make the sessions that matter, qualifying and the grand prix, better, because we need a quick Friday mid-afternoon dopamine hit and some extra view on our YouTube channel.

It's pathetic, short-sighted thinking. Bury sprint races in a shallow, unmarked grave and let the earth eat them.

End of brief but necessary aside about the sprint races on the 2027 F1 calendar

Still here? Good, we're back to start of the 2027 season. The US military campaign against Iran earlier this year destabilised the region massively and, crucially, shows no signs of stopping. If anything, some of the ancillary fighting sparked off by the US campaign is intensifying.

Let's say things aren't magically fixed in the coming months, and Bahrain is unable to host its race once again. Most likely organisers would look to push it back on the calendar in hopes of a resolution, much as they have this year, which would leave the first race of the season in...Saudi Arabia, whose grand prix was cancelled this year for much the same reasons, and who are engaged in a very active conflict with Houthi fighters.

It's not exactly a surprise that there is absolutely no concession to this reality in the 2027 F1 schedule. FOM and the FIA continue to insist that they still plan to hold the season-ending Qatar and Abu Dhabi races at their intended venues in less than three months' time (in reality, the overwhelming likelihood is that Qatar will be cancelled and the Abu Dhabi race will be moved to Imola).

F1 continues to cover its eyes and pretend they can't see what's directly in front of them, and it's to the detriment of the sport.

The fact that teams are coming down the back stretch of the 2026 season not knowing how many races they have remaining is farcical. The fact that they're going to come into 2027 in the exact same situation looks like nothing short of absolutely catastrophic mismanagement.

It's tempting to give F1 the benefit of the doubt and imagine that they're reaching out to potential alternative race hosts for 2027 already – but the thing about the benefit of the doubt is that it's earned. F1 has not earned a speck of it.

The sport has manoeuvred itself into a position where money from its Middle Eastern races and the sponsors attached to them is absolutely critical to its ongoing success. They can't be criticised for failing to predict that the US would pull out all the stops to unsettle the global order (well, not for failing to predict how they'd do it, at least) but diving headfirst at the big dollar signs was always a tactic with some pitfalls. This is one of them.

There might not be any neat solution to this. There's probably no good way to manage the situation that F1 is in, but acknowledging it and being open about contingency planning would be a good start.

F1's 2027 calendar has four massive question marks on it. They're the first two races and last two races of the season. Whether or not they'll admit it, that is a massive problem.

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Chris Deeley - Editor

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