F1 personnel face mandatory Covid-19 vaccinations

F1 will make Covid-19 vaccinations mandatory for all personnel working within the paddock this year.

Across the past two years, F1 has worked within a bubble in a successful bid to move safely from country to country and keep the championship moving.

Sergio Perez, Lance Stroll, Lewis Hamilton and Kimi Raikkonen have all missed races since the start of the pandemic due to contracting Covid-19.

Lando Norris, Pierre Gasly, Nikita Mazepin and Charles Leclerc [twice], meanwhile, all tested positive during the off-season.

The stance on vaccination was agreed upon during a meeting of the FIA World Motor Sport Council in December, with an F1 spokesperson confirming: "F1 [FOM] will require all travelling personnel to be fully vaxxed and will not request exemptions."

GPFans understands that 'fully vaccinated' includes the booster jab which is a requirement for entry to multiple countries.

The stance extends to all personnel working within the paddock and includes guests of the teams.

It could prove problematic for medical car driver Alan van der Merwe who missed races in Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi due to his vaccination status last year.

In making this decision ahead of the season, F1 will hope to avoid scenes similar to those of the Australian Open tennis tournament where Novak Djokovic was detained then deported.

After the incident, the Australian Grand Prix Corporation made clear its stance that no exemptions would be granted should F1 request them.

It is possible blanket vaccination will see the sport ease back on its testing regime and relax the social bubbles of recent years to bring a level of normality back to paddock life.

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