A revised 2012 F1 calendar has been revealed today, trimmed back from 21 to 20 races.
The Turkish Grand Prix, which has seen poor attendance since its introduction in 2005, has been dropped.
The Bahrain Grand Prix returns to the calendar having been dropped this year due to the civil unrest in the country. Its race is scheduled to be held on April 22nd, not at the end of the season as was previously suggested.
There are six back-to-back races: Australia and Malaysia, China and Bahrain, Germany and Hungary, Belgium and Italy, Japan and Korea and the season-concluding United States and Brazilian rounds.
Here is the calendar in full:
| Round | Date | Race | Circuit |
| 1 | March 18th | Australian Grand Prix | Melbourne |
| 2 | March 25th | Malaysian Grand Prix | Sepang International Circuit |
| 3 | April 15th | Chinese Grand Prix | Shanghai International Circuit |
| 4 | April 22nd | Bahrain Grand Prix | Bahrain International Circuit |
| 5 | May 13th | Spanish Grand Prix | Circuit de Catalunya |
| 6 | May 27th | Monaco Grand Prix | Monte-Carlo |
| 7 | June 10th | Canadian Grand Prix | Montreal |
| 8 | June 24th | European Grand Prix | Valencia |
| 9 | July 8th | British Grand Prix | Silverstone |
| 10 | July 22nd | German Grand Prix | Hockenheimring |
| 11 | July 29th | Hungarian Grand Prix | Hungaroring |
| 12 | September 2nd | Belgian Grand Prix | Spa-Francorchamps |
| 13 | September 9th | Italian Grand Prix | Monza |
| 14 | September 23rd | Singapore Grand Prix | Singapore |
| 15 | October 7th | Japanese Grand Prix | Suzuka |
| 16 | October 14th | Korean Grand Prix | Korean International Circuit |
| 17 | October 28th | Indian Grand Prix | Buddh International Circuit |
| 18 | November 4th | Abu Dhabi | Yas Marina |
| 19 | November 18th | United States Grand Prix | Circuit of the Americas |
| 20 | November 25th | Brazilian Grand Prix | Interlagos |
With 20 races, the 2012 season will be the longest ever held. The new calendar was unanimously ratified by a fax vote of the FIA World Motor Sports Council.
View the 2012 F1 calendar.
2012 F1 calendar
Image ?? Renault/LAT
TFLB
31st August 2011, 17:48
Is the exclusion of the Turkish GP final, or are there still negotiations ongoing? It would be a shame to lose the circuit.
BasCB (@bascb)
31st August 2011, 19:44
As this is the final and voted through calendar, it would only be changed to allow things like this years cancellation of Bahrain now.
Scary Terry (@hatebreeder)
1st September 2011, 5:38
yeah should’ve removed valencia.
Dan Thorn (@dan-thorn)
31st August 2011, 17:48
Wow, that’s some summer break!
I know this isn’t the popular opinion but I won’t miss Turkey. I always thought it was a bit overrated and it doesn’t matter how good Turn 8 is, the rest of it is pants.
It’s a shame it’s not really feasible to have the US and Canadian GP’s together too, but you can’t have everything!
Bob Littleroot
31st August 2011, 18:17
Was a much better MotoGP track
Fixy (@)
31st August 2011, 19:23
I’m sorry for Istanbul Park, I was good at it in games ;)
graigchq (@graigchq)
1st September 2011, 0:07
really is sad news, as realistically, Istanbul Park is Tilke’s best circuit, shame it couldn’t have been built somewhere more popular, but really is an awesome circuit
montreal95 (@montreal95)
1st September 2011, 1:38
Disagree, the whole circuit is good not only turn 8. The elevation changes, like at downhill turn 1 and blind sweeping turn 3 make it so, not to mention the “double switchback” turns in the last sector which are beneficial for great side-by-side racing!
The track’s there, the way it should be. Pity no one came to see it.
Mike
1st September 2011, 2:29
I agree, what a pity. He gets one that people actually like and then they scrap it. Poor Tilke!
Torg
1st September 2011, 12:03
Yeh i second that, its a lovely flowing circuit and even the final mickey mouse chicanes are enjoyable, get some nice racing through there due to the different lines that can be had.
Lucas "Mr. Veloce"
1st September 2011, 17:57
They can’t have the Canadian and US Grands Prix back-to-back because the Texas summer is to hot.
Tom
31st August 2011, 17:51
I bet the teams will love having Bahrain a week after China. That’s genius scheduling.
slr
31st August 2011, 18:01
Abu Dhabi and China should swap places in my opinion.
Tom
31st August 2011, 18:17
Two back-to-back boring races would be insulting.
Nick.UK (@)
31st August 2011, 19:59
China was brilliant this year!
PieLighter (@pielighter)
31st August 2011, 20:25
No, he means Abu Dhabi then Bahrain. Two boring, oil-funded races. To be fair though, UAE looks nice. Employ Populous to do circuit modifications and it could be really good.
For those who don’t know, Populous are the guys behind the Arena complex/track extension at Silverstone.
Shimks
31st August 2011, 18:01
But they’ll be glad there’s one less race, I guess. Or was it never proposed that there would be 21 in one season?
raymondu999 (@raymondu999)
31st August 2011, 18:31
Bernie said even since the end of 2010 that 20 would be where the line is drawn
Christian Briddon
31st August 2011, 19:10
Bernie also said that F1 would always be on free to view tv.
George (@george)
31st August 2011, 20:00
It still is
PieLighter (@pielighter)
31st August 2011, 20:26
Not quite George.
Bernie says a lot of things, very rarely do they come true.
Rits
1st September 2011, 11:42
Clearly, George hasn’t heard of the Sky deal yet.
Rits
1st September 2011, 11:41
Logic is beyond FOM!
Lucas "Mr. Veloce"
1st September 2011, 18:07
Is it? Or are you being sarcastic? I personally think having Bahrain back near at the start of the year is a stupid idea. With the civil unrest, the whole point of having the Grand Prix nearer to the end on the second provisional calendar was to give the Bahraini government more time to calm the civil unrest. They just have gone and made a stupid error in my opinion. I get what you are on about with having Bahrain and China back-to-back, its a bad idea, the whole point of having back-to-back races is that they aren’t far apart from each other. Having Bahrain and China back-to-back is like having a dying person being taken to the furthest hospital when there others nearby.
Alexander
31st August 2011, 17:54
gutted that turkey is dropped, why didn’t they drop Valencia or Bahrain. i know turkey wasn’t a big f1 country but the track was awesome, it was a drivers track
there is only 8 European races now
there is now 12 fly away races, there are too many Asian races
slr
31st August 2011, 17:55
Valencia’s position in the calendar was never under threat.
CarsVsChildren (@carsvschildren)
31st August 2011, 18:25
So says the Eurocentric fan boy.
The Japan dweller typing this comment much prefers to have a spread of races throughout the globe.
it is a “WORLD Championship”
Nick.UK (@)
31st August 2011, 20:01
Turkey is not in Europe :P
Nixon
1st September 2011, 8:41
Half of Istanbul is in europe, but I wonder if the circuit is in the european or asian side
BasCB (@bascb)
1st September 2011, 8:45
Its about 30-50 km out of town (if I remember rigth) and on the Asian side.
Craig Woollard (@craig-o)
1st September 2011, 17:40
Spot on. We need a South African GP to return :( not old enough to remember Kyalami but the track seemed amazing!
Ben Needham (@ben-n)
31st August 2011, 17:54
Wow, skipping the entirity of August! Gives me a chance to go on holiday, but other than that, i’m disappointed! The main thing is that the first race is where it should be, and the final race is where it should be. There’s nothing better than getting up early for the Australian GP after a winter of anticipation and i’m glad that will be the case this year.
A shame about Turkey, I like the circuit, but if it isn’t selling then that’s that.
Journeyer
31st August 2011, 18:10
One word: Olympics.
BasCB (@bascb)
31st August 2011, 19:49
Ah, yes. That makes sense, give the teams a bit more time to recover during the long season while sitting out the summer to avoid TV scheduling nighmares with the Olympics.
Jim
1st September 2011, 10:10
The Olympics run from 27 July to 12 Aug 2012.
Pink Peril (@pink-peril)
5th October 2011, 8:30
Agreed Ben, the first & last races are as it should be, and the rest of the season has slotted in between them nicely. Would be even better if we lost Valencia though, god I loath that track.
f1geordie
31st August 2011, 18:00
Get Bahrain out and Istanbul back in! Aside the human rights stuff, Bahrain is such a dull race :(
Mr_Kinetic
31st August 2011, 18:02
what about India and Abu Dhabi? wasn’t that another back to back race?
xxiinophobia (@xxiinophobia)
31st August 2011, 20:37
Good spot!
sato113 (@sato113)
31st August 2011, 22:12
Keith india and abu dhabi make it 7 back to backs!
Paul
3rd September 2011, 2:35
Yes, there are 7 back-to-back races. I was just about to post a comment about it, though I should check that no one made the same observation.
1 Australia, Malaysia
2 China, Bahrain
3 Germany, Hungary
4 Belgium, Italy
5 Japan, Korea
6 India, Abu Dhabi
7 US, Brazil
Nullius
31st August 2011, 18:03
I’ll be amazed if this calendar holds up. Bahrain is still full of Saudi troops and many of the circuit’s shia employees have “disappeared”. The fact that is slated to be on the weekend after China also suggests that it is not the firmest of fixtures in the minds of the FIA.
Also, three weeks between rounds 2 and 3 (and fully a month off between China and Spain if Bahrain is pulled), *and* five weeks off in the summer, but 6 back to back weekends (5 without Bahrain)?!?
I can see some sponsors getting grumpy about this.
I await the revised calendar with interest.
CarsVsChildren (@carsvschildren)
31st August 2011, 18:32
bugger. I missed this when typing a similar (and inferior comment below)
John Edwards
31st August 2011, 19:51
yep, and with the new wonderful broken TV coverage in the UK you could go a couple of months without a race.
montreal95 (@montreal95)
1st September 2011, 2:56
To be honest, I don’t expect the calendar to be much different to this one, except maybe Bahrain and Spa.
Nixon
1st September 2011, 8:44
Oh and dont forget Bahrain in april… its gonna be really hot.
jagolevert (@jagolevert)
31st August 2011, 18:07
India and Abu Dhabi are also back to back, according to this.
I think it’s a real shame that Turkey’s been dropped, obviously if it’s not getting the punters there, it’s not financially possible, but it’s a good circuit, going to miss the fabulous turn 8! I can’t stand Valencia, it’s such a dull track, incredibly little overtaking and it looks the same throughout, very hard to distingusih between the different points of the track. I hope when it’s contract is up, Formula 1 moves on elsewhere, there’s so many other better tracks. I wouldn’t mind going to Germany twice in a year, both the Nurburgring and Hockenheimring are great tracks, but it’d be nice to get somewhere like Magny-Cours or even the A1 Ring back. Anything but Valencia ..!
Mole
31st August 2011, 21:42
to be fair, Abu Dabhi is a common stoppoing over point for flights to India
ed24f1 (@ed24f1)
31st August 2011, 18:11
They should place Turkey on standby for April 22nd in case Bahrain has to be cancelled again.
Apart from that, I like the calendar. It’s great to have Australia and Brazil as the bookends of the season, and it will be interesting to have a new track for the penultimate race of the year.
The 5 week break will be tough, though, for the fans!
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
31st August 2011, 18:15
I’m particularly glad to see there’s no clash with the Le Mans 24 Hours (16/17th June).
ed24f1 (@ed24f1)
31st August 2011, 18:33
Hopefully a Massa/Alonso/Fisichella Ferrari GT car then!
matt90 (@matt90)
31st August 2011, 18:42
That’s a rare treat. Although I quite liked having such a ridiculously motorsport orientated weekend this year- le mans in the background for 24 hours, sometimes with long proper watching periods and breaks for F1 quali and race.
And I doubt it’ll result in any F1 drivers competing anyway unfortunately, although here’s hoping for a Vettel, Schumacher, Rosberg Audi against a sorted Hamilton, Button, di Resta Aston Martin.
BasCB (@bascb)
31st August 2011, 18:54
To be honest, even if Vettel might end up driving some car there, for Rosberg and Schu it will rather be a Mercedes SLS GT car and Button and Hamilton would probably end up in a McLaren MP4-12C GT3.
Victor_RO (@victor_ro)
31st August 2011, 19:37
Except for the fact that GT3 cars are not allowed at Le Mans… and before anyone trots out the press release which confirmed the WEC, the GT World Championship GT class and the ACO/WEC GT class will be two separate things.
And I’m not sure anyone from the F1 grid will be mad enough to do Le Mans as well… though I hope there will be someone. :D Also hoping to see Brundle make the trip again and hopefully finish the race for a change.
BasCB (@bascb)
31st August 2011, 21:00
Oh, yeah forgot about that! Bugger that, but they still will never drive an Aston (competitor)
But we might see Kimi in the Pug!
matt90 (@matt90)
31st August 2011, 23:51
But Aston and Audi aren’t real competitors as they are in a different class. But I know what you mean, shame we won’t see anybody released from a contract even if they were interested.
Zahir (@)
31st August 2011, 19:05
Yep Martin Brundle has already mentioned on twitter that he hopes to drive there this year thanks to them not clashing. It will be interesting to see who else from the F1 circus will try get a drive at Le Mans next year.
I hope my exams are over by then because it would be nice to stay up for the 24 hours for the first time.
Also seeing this calendar has already made me quite excited for next year bearing in mind this seasons titles are all but wrapped up. I got a good feeling for the 2012 season!
bosyber (@bosyber)
31st August 2011, 20:30
Guess it helps Anthony Davidson too, at the least (since the summer break is after, he won’t have a broken collarbone or what was it :).
Frans
31st August 2011, 18:22
Wow, lots of back to back race… I counted 7! I guess MotoGP 2012 schedule would look this funky too? :)
It will be a quiet August…
CarsVsChildren (@carsvschildren)
31st August 2011, 18:29
Just one thing I noticed: If Bahrain is cancelled again this year that leaves a month long gap in the calendar…. won’t that really disrupt the flow of the season? Two periods of nothing, followed by months of hectic activity.
ed24f1 (@ed24f1)
31st August 2011, 18:35
Yes, but they are planning to have a test between Bahrain and Spain, so there will be at least something to watch in that period.
I don’t really understand why they have a 3 week gap after Malaysia though, surrounded by two back-to-back races. They could’ve spaced that out a little better.
Tom
31st August 2011, 18:44
You assume the testing shall be broadcast.
Bigbadderboom
1st September 2011, 17:33
I would be more suprised if they didn’t bring testing back, there’s been enough noise from most of the teams this year, I’m sure it’s something FOTA will be addressing.
Ned Flanders (@ned-flanders)
31st August 2011, 18:33
Sad but not at all surprising to see Bahrain back on the calendar. It is about time that F1 got its priorities right and stopped associating itself so closely with such murderous regimes
PieLighter (@pielighter)
31st August 2011, 21:02
I wouldn’t be surprised to see a Tripoli GP to be quite honest.
matt90 (@matt90)
31st August 2011, 23:54
To be fair Libya might stabilise when they get Gadafi. Unlikely to be that simple but how’s Egypt looking now? A Syrian GP however…
Prisoner Monkeys (@prisoner-monkeys)
1st September 2011, 4:18
Uh-huh. Define “murderous regime”, please. The government in Manama was willing to order its security forces to open fire on peaceful protests, correct?
Well, the government in Canberra was attempting to “solve” the problem of illegal immigrants by shipping nearly a thousand of them to Malaysia – a country where asylum seekers have no legal rights and live in constant fear of harrassment, detainment and beatings from security forces. The “Malaysia Solution” was supposed to discourage people-smugglers (exactly how it was supposed to happen is a mystery). The only thing that stopped it from going ahead was a High Court ruling that deemed the plan unconsitutional because the government could not make good on their obligations to protect the asylum seekers. Nevertheless, the government is still trying to send asylum seekers to Malaysia, a place where they will have no rights.
So, if Formula 1 cannot go to Bahrain, then it cannot come to Australia either.
MaroonJack (@maroonjack)
1st September 2011, 7:05
You compare a failed plan to deport asylum seekers with an actual orders to shoot, imprison and torture people. Don’t you think that there’s a huge difference between the two?
Prisoner Monkeys (@prisoner-monkeys)
1st September 2011, 8:42
There’s a difference – it’s just not as vast as you think it is. If the “Malaysia Solution” had been approved, the asylum seekers would have been sent to Malaysia within fifteen minutes of the verdict. And once there, the Australian government would not be able to guarantee their safety.
The point in all of this is that the whole “Formula 1 should only go to countries where it is ethical to do so” argument is absolute rubbish. No-one who points to Bahrain as being a human ricghts black hole criticises China. Nobody complains that China is one of the most oppressive regimes in the world. If you look deeply enough, every country has something they’ve said or done that could be used as an argument against them having a Grand Prix.
MaroonJack (@maroonjack)
1st September 2011, 9:11
The difference is huge, mainly because it didn’t happen. A stupid idea was born and died, before anyone was hurt.
Agreed, but I don’t think that’s the argument. I think it’s more like: “F1 shouldn’t be used to support bloody regimes”.
There is a difference between going to a country where crime happens and supporting the guilty party. Going to Bahrain could be seen as the latter: an act of support for Al Khalifa family, King Hamad and Sunnis.
It’s true that Communist Party of China has blood on it’s hands. Obviously we should stand against it. However Chinese Grand Prix isn’t a direct sign of support for Hu Jintao, for CPC or People’s Liberation Army.
Prisoner Monkeys (@prisoner-monkeys)
1st September 2011, 9:17
MaroonJack (@maroonjack)
1st September 2011, 9:51
The Chinese Grand Prix is not a political event. The Bahrain Grand Prix definitely is. I understand why they might seem the same to you, but from my point of view they aren’t. We all have to draw the line somewhere and we draw it differently.
Mike
1st September 2011, 16:12
Everything in China is a political event. You don’t seriously think thew CPC likes the cars and the noises do you?
@HoHum (@hohum)
1st September 2011, 17:11
Prisoner Monkey, as an English teacher you should know the difference between an “asylum seeker” and an “economic migrant”. People who are part of a minority may leave their country to escape persecution from their government but further movement to other countries is purely economic migration. Why should economic migrants from a failed state be able to migrate to any country they choose when equally poor people from other countries don’t have this choice. Choosing to deliberately break a countries laws might show initiative but I don’t think it is a desirable trait in immigrants.
BasCB (@bascb)
1st September 2011, 8:52
Whereby you have perfectly shown the difference between a country like Bahrain and a country with a working and (largely) independent justice system.
In the case of Australia the justice system stepped in to stop stupid ideas by politicians happen.
In Bahrain ppl were convicted in one sided military courts (that is now improving when the cases were moved to a civilian court, even if that court might be biased) on largely constructed cases.
And we still have to wait and see if the independant investigation into killings of civilians will be really allowed to investigate everything and present its conclusions.
James
31st August 2011, 18:51
Six back-to-back race weekends is going to be hard graft for the teams. It’s alright for the bosses, drivers and riff-raff who generally hop on the plane in the evening. I feel for the mechanics tasked with packing up and getting under way. They’ve also got to be in attendence for four test sessions as well!
Good luck ladies and gents!
Prisoner Monkeys (@prisoner-monkeys)
1st September 2011, 4:21
Four test sessions? There’s only one planned, to take place at Mugello ahead of the European leg of the championship.
It’s perfectly manageable, by the way – the teams actually have two or three full pit crews and rotate them through the races to give the mechanics a break. The drivers, management and race engineers are the only people within the team who attend every race.
BasCB (@bascb)
1st September 2011, 8:55
The total amount of test sessions has not changed. They have one less during the winter pre-season and instead have it before Barcelona.
And the 5 week summer period makes it a tad easier to find some time off as well.
UKfanatic (@)
31st August 2011, 18:52
Great schedule, gladd to see Spa guaranteed, turkey despite being fairly nice on overtaking it lacks, the ambient, crowds and nature likewise china in my opinion important race promotion wise but very poor race in spetacule, no people no nature, Bahrain is a good round in my opinion cause it is one of a kind, and I still remember the double overtakes there quite amazing
Chris Holland-Skinner (@kidchris92)
1st September 2011, 0:57
I like China because it is just so big! Really is one of a kind, seems to throw up good races for some reason too. I disagree on Bahrain though, Abu Dhabi does the whole desert thing too, and has more potential than Bahrain.
melthom
31st August 2011, 19:14
They should bring back A1 Ring and Paul Richard. There’s a risk that Bahrain will cause demonstrations all over the world and give F1 a bad rep again. Better they try to get South Africa and Argentina back.
Fixy (@)
31st August 2011, 19:24
Wow the Bahrain GP’s on my birthday. I hope it will be more exciting than 2010!
xxiinophobia (@xxiinophobia)
31st August 2011, 20:42
You and I share a birthday, then. :)
I too wish for a better birthday gift than a typical Bahrain GP.
BasCB (@bascb)
31st August 2011, 21:32
It can only be better than the last one (or two if we count the one that did not even happen), can’t it!
Chris Holland-Skinner (@kidchris92)
1st September 2011, 1:00
The 2011 race was definately better than 2010! Was dissapointed as a fan of the racing not to see it happen this year mind, although I understand and completely agree with the decision not to go there. The situation will be no better in April, they should have just gone to Turkey instead…
AndrewTanner (@andrewtanner)
31st August 2011, 21:59
Last year the Chinese GP was the day after my birthday, next year the day before! One year I will be lucky.
John H
31st August 2011, 19:48
My viewing predictions:
BBC first three:
1. Monaco Grand Prix – Monte-Carlo
2. British Grand Prix – Silverstone
3. Brazilian Grand Prix – Interlagos
Sky next three:
4. Australian Grand Prix – Melbourne
5. Belgian Grand Prix – Spa-Francorchamps
6. Singapore Grand Prix – Singapore
Next picks are made alternately
BBC
7. US Grand Prix – Circuit of the Americas
9. Italian Grand Prix – Monza
11. Japanese Grand Prix – Suzuka
13. Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – Yas Marina
15. German Grand Prix – Hockenheimring
17. Chinese Grand Prix – Shanghai International Circuit
19. Spanish Grand Prix – Circuit de Catalunya
Sky
8. Canadian Grand Prix – Montreal
10. Indian Grand Prix – Buddh International Circuit
12. Malaysian Grand Prix -Sepang International Circuit
14. Hungarian Grand Prix – Hungaroring
16. Korean Grand Prix – Korean International Circuit
18. Bahrain Grand Prix – Bahrain International Circuit
20. European Grand Prix – Valencia
It’s just like “Bun-Rab” at school.
John Edwards
31st August 2011, 19:55
Doubt it. Sky will take the evening races as much as possible.
I hope that they do that because the pub is open.
The pub is not open for the ones at 7am!
Its still crap though.
Alfie
31st August 2011, 22:05
I was just about to say, that would be an intereting way to place the calendar. I want the Beeb to have the season opener and finisher.
Jamman960
31st August 2011, 23:56
I imagine it’ll work out so that at least 1 race per month is on Sky only, I don’t suppose they’ll want us being able to cancel the sub for more than 1 month per year :(
Danny S
1st September 2011, 9:41
Why can’t Sky create a channel dedicated to motorsport (F1, GP2, GP3, Indy etc) and have people subscribe to it separately from Sky Sports? There are some people out there who just want to watch Formula 1 and not be stuck with all of the sports channels that Sky will probably force on their customers.
nvHerman
2nd September 2011, 11:54
I might be wrong, but I was under the impression that ALL races will be shown on Sky, and the BBC will show half the races AS WELL AS Sky.
Roald (@roald)
31st August 2011, 19:50
Well, Turkey dropped… we all saw it coming didn’t we? I Don’t quite understand all the praise Istanbul Park gets from the lot of you here though. It’s not a bad circuit at all, but it’s certainly not as great as it’s made out to be. Turn 8 deserves it’s almost cult-like status (but it should have been given a proper name!), but there’s nothing about the rest of the circuit that truly makes it stand out among other tracks in my opinion. So, if you ask me we’re discussing a venue that is pretty good, but very much replaceable; it’s been given a chance for the past 6 years (!) to attract enough spectators and clearly the Turkish people are not interested enough. Now I know money isn’t everything, but us fans tend to forget that money is what keeps our favorite sport in existence as a whole. It’s all about balance really; the Abu Dhabi money is better spent on keeping Spa on the calendar than Istanbul Park.
This does not mean there aren’t other tracks I’d rather see scrapped though, especially Bahrein and Valencia. But apart from those 2… I think Bernie is doing a pretty darn good job.
paul
31st August 2011, 19:59
any news yet on which ones the poor people(like me) who cant afford sky will get to watch live??
AndrewTanner (@andrewtanner)
31st August 2011, 21:57
So far we know that the BBC will get half the races, including Silverstone, Monaco and Interlagos. I guess details will be announced at the beginning of the season next year.
F1 Sight
31st August 2011, 19:59
This schedule was pretty much expected with the exception of a few date changes. 2013 and 2014 is what makes me nervous with a possible French race and Russia coming in, and if there are 20 races then 2 have to go. I think France should be in the Championship but Spa needs to be on the calendar every year. If Bahrain misses there date again they should be excluded permanently no matter how much they pay.
Roald (@roald)
31st August 2011, 20:22
My guess is Circuit de Catalunya has to make way eventually. Bernie hinted at scrapping either one of the Spanish Grand Prix´s before a race not too long ago (unfortunately forgot which race it was, probably Valencia itself). With Alonso not being the reigning world champion anymore it’s not in Formula 1’s best interest to have 2 Spanish Grand Prix’s on the calendar, so either one of them will probably disappear… and we all know it won’t be Valencia.
As for the whole Spa & Paul Ricard deal, we all know it’s bound to happen eventually, it’s just a matter of time. Especially because the organization behind the Belgian Grand Prix seem to be pretty keen to get it over with themselves.
PS: Quick Question… how do I change my picture on this website?
HounslowBusGarage
31st August 2011, 21:07
Go to http://www.gravatar.com and you can do it there.
I think you’re right about Catalunya as Valencia seems to have the clever money behind it.
If next year is the last Belgium solo, then I presume it will be Paul Ricard to start the swop arrangement in 2013.
Personally, I don’t expect to see Bahrain actually take place without massive repression of the population next year. Afer all, this year the protestors showed that they had the strength to cause the race’s cancellation and it will be a prime target for them next year. If it actually takes place, I think it will be amongst the ruins of much of the city – setting a new precedent for F1.
Chris Holland-Skinner (@kidchris92)
1st September 2011, 1:05
On the plus side, if a new deal is signed taking the French/Belgian GP through to 2018 or whatever, at least the race is safe guarded till then and will not be replaced by Russia or any other future race, I to would like to see Spa every year, but this situation is better than not having spa at all.
themagicofspeed (@)
31st August 2011, 21:16
My fantasy calendar for 2012 would be:
Round Date Race Circuit
1 March 18th Australian Grand Prix Melbourne
2 March 25th Malaysian Grand Prix Sepang International Circuit
3 April 15th Chinese Grand Prix Shanghai International Circuit
4 April 22nd Spanish Grand Prix Jerez
5 May 13th French Grand Prix Paul Ricard
6 May 27th Monaco Grand Prix Monte-Carlo
7 June 10th Canadian Grand Prix Montreal
8 June 24th European Grand Prix Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari (Imola)
9 July 8th British Grand Prix Silverstone
10 July 22nd German Grand Prix Hockenheimring
11 July 29th Hungarian Grand Prix Hungaroring
12 September 2nd Belgian Grand Prix Spa-Francorchamps
13 September 9th Italian Grand Prix Monza
14 September 23rd Singapore Grand Prix Singapore
15 October 7th Japanese Grand Prix Suzuka
16 October 14th Korean Grand Prix Korean International Circuit
17 October 28th Indian Grand Prix Buddh International Circuit
18 November 4th Abu Dhabi Yas Marina
19 November 18th United States Grand Prix Circuit of the Americas
20 November 25th Brazilian Grand Prix Interlagos
The main changes i’d make are-
Spain – GP at Jerez and alternating with Valencia thereafter;
Bahrain – Dropped indefinately in favour of a revived French GP after Spain and before Monaco.
European GP – Valencia dropped (still to host Spanish GP alternating from 2013)and European round to be held at Imola.
British GP – Old classic GP circuit used instead of annoying (imo) ‘Arena’ track.
I know a lot of the changes might be hated, or loved – this is just my opinion.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
31st August 2011, 21:37
I’m always surprised when people do these and include Jerez – it’s a bit slow and narrow for F1. I’d love to see them at Motorland Aragon though.
Lachie
1st September 2011, 4:00
Hear hear! Why on Earth they run two Spanish GP’s, neither of which are at Aragon is beyond me. Everyone says Catalunya is boring because the teams all test there. So move the race to somewhere they don’t test!
HounslowBusGarage
31st August 2011, 22:52
But if it’s a real fantasy Keith, why do they leave out Indianaoplis full track, the Nordschleiffe and Portimao?
Hey, and while I’m at it . . . I saw the Lithuania 1000 kms on Motors TV last week which was held on a stretch of a three lane motorway plus a single lane interchange and motorway service station over about 9 hours, complete with pouring rain. If these guys can do it without Paddock Club and Executive Parking just for the love of racing then every country should!
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
31st August 2011, 22:57
I saw that too! I’m glad someone else brought it up because it was so bonkers I was starting to wonder if I’d dreamt it.
That track looked more than a little dangerous even before it started pouring with rain.
themagicofspeed (@)
1st September 2011, 11:28
Because of the way F1 cars and their tires work, F1 would probably run into problems if they ran the cars on the full banked Indianapolis Speedway track. They had problems with T13 in 05, and that was only a small and quite shallow part of the banking.
The Nordschleiffe would be far to dangerous by modern F1 standards, it was too dangerous in 1976, to bring it to modern standards would rob it of all of its danger, which is what makes it so amazing to drive.
HounslowBusGarage
1st September 2011, 22:23
‘Fantasy calendar’ means the calendar is a fantasy; not real. I was going to write something very insulting next to themagicofspeed, but I will refrain.
Please understand that when someone compiles a fantasy calendar or fantasy team or fantasy anything, it’s just imaginery and not supposed to be taken at serious, practical or sensible.
Chris Holland-Skinner (@kidchris92)
1st September 2011, 1:15
I hate to be picky, but Spain just one week after China? Love the countrys listed though and the order of the calender, I’d probably alternate the Spanish race between Valencia Street track and Barcalona though, used every other year they may seem more interesting! Love to see a return to Imola and France and Belgium as two separate events. I like the new arena layout, although I do miss bridge corner. We have gained the Abbey corner now though, goes a long way to making up for the loss of bridge, and gained two new overtaking spots.
Pink Peril (@pink-peril)
5th October 2011, 8:38
Aragon is an awesome track for MotoGP, I’d love to see F1 on it. Almost as much as I’d love to see F1 at Laguna Seca (since we are talking fantasy seasons).
Icthyes (@icthyes)
31st August 2011, 21:38
The second back-to-back makes little sense. Three weeks after Malaysia and three weeks before Barcelona. The latter is probably for the return of testing, but after a back-to-back opening of the season (how it should always be, I think), having to wait 3 weeks for the next race is a bit too much. Has any reason been given?
AndrewTanner (@andrewtanner)
31st August 2011, 21:54
Great to see so many back-to-backs. I was considering doing one in the future and Spa twinned with Monza sounds very appealing. I’m going to Monza this year and already had Spa pencilled in for 2012. I guess I would have the benefit of knowing my way round one city/circuit to take some of the pressure off.
Disappointed but not surprised to see Turkey go. My favourite circuit, but i’m not one to stand in the way of progress.
sato113 (@sato113)
31st August 2011, 22:15
well at least Melbourne and Spa are still there!
Shrieker (@shrieker)
31st August 2011, 22:29
Funny that the Turkish GP is being dropped, but F1 will still be free to air here in Turkey.
Bernie’s way of irony ?
Stephen Higgins
31st August 2011, 22:47
Something else I think is interesting, we only have Eight European races next year as well compared with 11 ten years ago (in 2002).
Okay, we had 3 less races then, but look at the European races that were on the calendar 10 years ago.
Austria, France, San Marino all gone.
So only 40% of the season takes place in Europe next year, as opposed to 65% 10 years ago.
…. thoughts on that ??
Lachie
1st September 2011, 4:06
Can’t help but agree that it is a WORLD championship so the fact that the races are spreading out over the globe isn’t really surprising. The real problem is all the best tracks are in Europe whereas mostly the outside-Europe tracks are Tilke-bores.
Maybe if they went to places like Potrero de los Funes we’d be more embracing of the global expansion.
BasCB (@bascb)
1st September 2011, 8:58
yes please :-D
themagicofspeed (@)
1st September 2011, 11:22
I dont really miss the A1 ring, its a castrated shadow of the old Ostereichring (im not sure how its spelt, sorry), although as Martin Brundle said in his commentary at Spa, there needs to be a place for France on the calendar, its a historically important race for F1, there is a French manufacturer (Renault), there is support for F1 in France so i think it makes total sense bringing it back – but not at the expense of Spa. Drop a tilkedrome to make room, but not Spa.
And Imola is not only a nice track, its important i think – Ayrton died there, imo in F1 terms its an important place. Imola didnt light the world on fire with lots of overtaking, but DRS and the new specification cars might go some way to help that. When F1 last raced Imola in 2006 there were little or no measures to increase overtaking.
Its sad that we are losing races in F1’s core fanbase (Europe) so Bernie can rake in the oil dollars for races many fans couldnt give a monkeys about.
maxthecat
1st September 2011, 0:06
Maybe the whole of August missing is to allow some in-season testing too.
I’d be happier with a steady stream of races every two weeks with one or two back to backs but then i love my F1 so i hate the waiting :D
BasCB (@bascb)
1st September 2011, 8:59
As it was offered in a comment above, that period might well be to avoid scheduling conflicts with the 2012 summer Olympics!
themagicofspeed (@)
1st September 2011, 11:04
The next Olympics are in August 2012, i wonder if its anything to do with that, why theres no races in August? Although unlikely it could be a factor, as they might have thought that if they held Grand Prix at the same time as the games, there wouldnt be as much interest in the GPs?
I think they did something similar when the Commonwealth Games was held in Australia, 2006 i think, Melbourne wasnt the season opener because the organisers didnt want to compete with the games for ticket sales, viewer figues, local awareness etc
themagicofspeed (@)
1st September 2011, 11:06
Didnt see BasCB’s comment before i posted, so ignore this lol.
Pink Peril (@pink-peril)
5th October 2011, 8:41
F1 never races in August, its always the traditional summer break time.
A41202813@GMAIL.COM (@)
1st September 2011, 0:37
Come On, TURKEY Was The Best Race In 2010.
What Gives ?
Go, HAMILTON !
jess
1st September 2011, 0:46
Going to Texas and gonna watch F1, yea baby. Saw the date and told the wife, I will be in Texas in Nov for the Race. That will by my first F1 Race.
BasCB (@bascb)
1st September 2011, 9:18
Sounds like a great plan to get into race visiting! Have fun there.
wasiF1 (@wasif1)
1st September 2011, 2:39
Sad that a wonderful circuit has lost it’s place from the calender.6 back to back races are way too much,I doubt the stress that will be on the teams.What about a 4 weeks holiday?
sid
1st September 2011, 8:42
Valencia is probably the least popular circuit among fans…I think they should have done the alternate race thing with Bahrain and Abu Dhabi….and same with Valencia and Paul Ricard
I for one cant still get over the potential loss of Spa…
Yeamon
1st September 2011, 9:21
Nothing but the truth here. Turkey is much better than the likes of Bahrain, China, and Both Spanish tracks. The attendance was just pitiful. Why return to a track that for where almost nobody shows up? Here in the States, relocation of sports franchises happen all the time because of terrible attendance numbers, with a race track though, you can only just axe the event.
Chrizz
1st September 2011, 9:24
I don’t know if somebody has already said this, but I’d rather drop the Bahrain GP instead of the Turkish GP. The Sakhir circuit layout is boring compared to the Istanbul circuit(which has turn 8 and other fast sweepers). Moreover, I don’t think it’s appropriate to race in Bahrain because of this year’s riots. It would be like organizing a barbecue at your neighbours place after his house has been burned down.
smifaye (@)
1st September 2011, 10:56
Awesome for the fans that we have 6 back to back races, and absolute logistical nightmare for the teams probably.
One thing that stands out about this calendar is the fact that we have 4 new races next to each other, from Korea through to USA. This could be awful unless the tracks are good.
HounslowBusGarage
1st September 2011, 11:29
Well, by the time we get to Korea next year it will be the third GP there and the fourth (I think) at Yas Marina, so they won’t be ‘new’ as such.
The only new one will be Austin.
smifaye (@)
1st September 2011, 12:12
Yeah new as in how we refer to the new teams. My point was that Abu Dhabi has not delivered, Korea hasn’t yet shown whether it can provide a good race in normal conditions, and then obviously India and USA we haven’t seen.
Roald (@roald)
1st September 2011, 12:43
Yet I think Abu Dhabi has the potential to be a nice addition. Just seeing the track on television makes me appreciate the atmosphere. I’d call it a diamond in the rough, seeing as how there’s enough money there to make some changes plus the fact that the people there seem to be willing to make some changes for the good… they proposed some changes to the layout for this year’s race but decided to wait until after this year’s GP. I don’t know, sure there’s better racing circuits on the calendar, but I like those high-profile venues like Abu Dhabi and Singapore, just goes to show how big Formula 1 actually is nowadays. Certainly those tracks are not nearly as bad as Valencia and Bahrein.
themagicofspeed (@)
1st September 2011, 11:34
I expect they may be forced to increase their logistical opeations, like while one set of trucks, cars, equipment etc is packing up at one track, theres a team of guys at the next setting up the garages, etc.
vjanik
1st September 2011, 11:41
so do we know which races will be shown live on the BBC?
spankythewondermonkey (@spankythewondermonkey)
1st September 2011, 12:47
wow. spa NOT on the august bank holiday (uk) weekend. might get to see it live for a change ;-)
John
2nd September 2011, 14:51
Oh dear. In the beggining we just had the introduction of boring circuits. Now, we also have the dropping out of good ones. Oh dear…
Vidal
14th October 2011, 12:50
You might want to check Race Countdown which counts down on the millisecond to every race event