The Formula 1 race in Russia has been cancelled. Since there will be no successor, Formula 1 will only complete 22 races this season – and is experiencing an unusually long break.
Formula 1 has finally decided not to replace the canceled Russia race. The World Championship calendar for the current season will thus be reduced to 22 Grand Prix, the racing series announced on Wednesday.
The guest performance in Sochi was originally scheduled for September 23. Because of the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine, however, Formula 1 canceled the race and also canceled the contract that had already been concluded with St. Petersburg for the next few years.
Increased freight costs and high load
With the decision, the record of 23 grand prix in one season has also been dropped. Formula 1 is now taking a three-week break between the performance in Monza, Italy on September 9th and the night race in Singapore on September 30th.
After the Russia cancellation, Qatar, Portugal and Turkey were initially discussed as possible replacement locations. A second race in Singapore was also discussed. But because of the increased freight costs and the already high strain on the teams due to the exhausting racing calendar, the decision was now made not to hold a substitute race.