Breaking news
Formula 1
Turkey joins 17-race 2020 Formula 1 calendar
The FIA and Formula 1 have confirmed a definitive 17-race 2020 schedule, taking the world championship season to a finish in mid-December.
Adam Cooper
Edited: Aug 25, 2020, 1:42 PM
Copy link
Share on Viber
As previously reported, the major novelty is the return in November of the Turkish GP at Istanbul Park for the first time since 2011.
The season ends as has long been planned with a double-header in Bahrain followed by the finale in Abu Dhabi.
All the newly-confirmed races will be three-day grands prix, with Imola – as already announced – the only outlier as a two-day event.
The final total of 17 gives F1 some margin in case one or two planned events are unexpectedly lost. The minimum number of races required to guarantee full payment by the TV broadcasters is 15.
The schedule now includes five venues that were not on the original version, with Mugello, Nurburgring, Portimao, Imola and Istanbul all added.
Read Also:
- F1 drivers support plan to bring back "awesome" Turkey
- Verstappen slams Imola F1 practice plan as "a bit stupid"
To be held on November 15, the Turkish race will be treated as a flyaway, with the cars and freight travelling by plane and then heading on to the Middle East. In past years everything travelled by road and sea.
There is no confirmation on what circuit layout will be used by the second Bahrain event, which will use the Sakhir GP name.
F1 had been considering the much shorter and faster outer circuit, which Ross Brawn has described as being almost an oval, but it's understood that it won't now be used. Sakhir has an alternative in the "endurance" course that was used for the 2010 Bahrain GP.
"We are proud to announce that Turkey, Bahrain and Abu Dhabi will be part of our 2020 season," said F1 boss Chase Carey.
"This year has presented Formula 1 and the world with an unprecedented challenge and we want to pay tribute to everyone across Formula 1, the FIA, the teams, and our partners who have made this possible.
"While we are all disappointed that we have not been able to return to some of our planned races this year we are confident our season has started well and will continue to deliver plenty of excitement with traditional, as well as new, races that will entertain all our fans."
F1 has also finally formally confirmed the cancellation of the Chinese GP. Before the start of the season the race was postponed from its scheduled date of April 19, and as the COVID crisis eased in the country it remained in contention for a new date for a while.
In contrast, there has yet to be an official cancellation of the Vietnam GP, which was postponed from April 5. The race won't happen this season, but there has yet to be formal confirmation from the Vietnam side.
F1 hoped to revive the flagship Hanoi street race within 2020, but logistical issues – and the challenge of potentially running the 2021 event just four or five months later – meant that it was not possible to run the race.
Date Venue July 5 Red Bull Ring, Austria July 12 Red Bull Ring, Austria July 19 Hungaroring, Hungary August 2 Silverstone, Britain August 9 Silverstone, Britain August 16 Barcelona, Spain August 30 Spa, Belgium September 6 Monza, Italy September 13 Mugello, Italy September 27 Sochi, Russia October 11 Nurburgring, Germany October 25 Portimao, Portugal November 1 Imola, Italy November 15 Istanbul Park, Turkey November 29 Sakhir, Bahrain December 6 Sakhir, Bahrain December 13 Yas Marina, Abu Dhabi
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Vettel has no plans to hire manager despite uncertain F1 future
Next article Plans to level playing field key to Haas staying in F1
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Adam Cooper
RB: Tsunoda “mentally on a different level” in 2024
Formula 1
Formula 1
Japanese GP
RB: Tsunoda “mentally on a different level” in 2024
Andretti planning F2 and F3 entries to promote US talent to F1 team
Formula 1
Formula 1
Andretti planning F2 and F3 entries to promote US talent to F1 team
Andretti F1 team formally opens new Silverstone facility
Formula 1
Formula 1
Andretti F1 team formally opens new Silverstone facility
Latest news
Jeff Burton and Dale Jarrett blast Carson Hocevar: "That's not racing"
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Martinsville II
5 min
Jeff Burton and Dale Jarrett blast Carson Hocevar: "That's not racing"
Kimi Antonelli reveals why he won’t take number 1 for the 2027 F1 season
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Mexican GP
37 min
Kimi Antonelli reveals why he won’t take number 1 for the 2027 F1 season
Who slept best last night: Kimi Antonelli
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Mexican GP
1 h
Who slept best last night: Kimi Antonelli
Feature
Discover prime content
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe