Start, Istanbul Park, 2020

Official: Canadian GP cancelled, F1 will race at Istanbul instead

2021 F1 season

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Formula 1 has confirmed the Canadian Grand Prix has been cancelled for a second season as a consequence of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The world championship was due to visit the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve for the seventh round of the world championship on June 13th. A release from Formula One today confirmed that the cancellation is due to an 14-day quarantine for people entering Canada, which was unnegotiable for the event.

F1 has confirmed it will instead return to Istanbul Park. The Turkish venue, which hosted the world championship between 2005 and 2011, returned to the calendar last year when the schedule was reorganised due to the pandemic.

The substitute race will go ahead on the same weekend Canada’s race was due to take place, one week after the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

The cancellation of the race leaves Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll and Williams driver Nicholas Latifi without a home race for the second year running. Latifi is yet to compete in his home race since his debut last season.

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Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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65 comments on “Official: Canadian GP cancelled, F1 will race at Istanbul instead”

  1. Hopefully the new track surface will have matured after last year’s event. We were robbed of seeing how these cars can truly handle that mega turn 8.

    1. It will surely have matured yeah. And if it is dry it should be fine I’d think.

  2. Both circuits I like, though logistically Azerbaijan – Turkey – France sounds somewhat easier.

    1. @david-br Yes, an Azerbaijan-Turkey pairing is better fitting logistically than Azerbaijan-Canada, so something good came out of this Canadian GP cancellation.

    2. Logistically Mugello fits much better and it’s far more interesting than boring tilkedrome.

      1. Turkey is a pretty decent track @regs. Its biggest disadvantage are the acres of runoff, which also mean that fans at the track sit relatively far from the action – but given the situation, who knows whether there will even be fans allowed in this year, so that is not a big issue.

        Can’t say it surprises me. I kind of expect more races (CotA, Mexico, maybe Singapore? to have to changes dates or be cancelled as well.)

  3. Finally, and as expected. Giving an exemption for F1 people would’ve opened a can of worms as others (especially sports series’) would’ve started asking for exemptions too, etc., so a good move by the government levels.
    Yes, shame because the Canadian GP is one of the most liked events, but the circumstances are too unfavorable for now, so another try next year. I’m happy for Istanbul Park as it’s logistically ideal for a Baku pairing.

    1. F1 gets exemptions in many countries though including the UK

      1. @nickthegreek Canada is Canada, not “many countries”, and has not been giving any sports exemptions.

  4. Good we won’t have to stay awake at midnight to watch Canadian GP.

    1. But we will get another race with our breakfast instead of in the afternoon :D

    2. Not that I am complaining, I actually like the concept, but some would definitely whine (just a bit) at life in the Pacific Time Zone.
      Getting up before 5:00 am on a Sat and Sunday to watch live feed is a mixed blessing. Thank the stars for Tape-Delay. One of the best inventions of all time. Just don’t ask me who is advertising, I don’t care and I don’t need to watch….bzzzz.
      Sympathy for those staying up till Midnight.? None here.
      Now that the Govt. has “saved” $45 mil CDN, wonder how I can mold that into pain and suffering and get some ca$h.?

      1. @rekibsn As a Nova Scotian, I hope some of that “saved” money could go to improving health care here, but I guess that’s not the way these things work.

        1. At least you guys have free healthcare. Down here, we are the only developed country in the world that doesn’t have that.

          1. First rule of economics, “there is no such thing as a “free lunch”.
            Usually around 50% of government revenues (taxation) goes to supporting “free” universal health care. In the current endless debt for free process, all bets are off.
            Considering what it costs the individual, in may cases you get what you pay for.

    3. Europeans got the advantage.

      1. Compared to normal start time of Canadian GP for anyone in India(or Singapore, Australia and Japan), Turkish GP will have a normal early evening start time(late evening for farther east time zones).

  5. Sorry to miss it. Dramatic things can and do happen here, even with stationary cars waiting in the pitlane! [2008]

  6. Ludicrous! No reason for any event to be cancelled right now. A silly policy causing this, silly.

    1. @jblank Some countries aren’t yet as willing to let many people in as others, so better respect country-specific approaches.

    2. I can understand the Canadian’s desire for strict quarantine. They share a border with the US, where about half the population believes pretending covid is a fantasy is the best solution.

    3. You may have missed the news about a pandemic. There’s this virus, see, and… ah, just google it.

    4. Blanky once again you have no idea what you are talking about.

  7. The only surprising thing about this announcement is that F1 aren’t making a huge song-and-dance about the reduced carbon footprint given all the other initiatives they are doing.

    Whilst the statement above is somewhat cynical, I bet the footprint saved will be equivalent to a lot of miles driven around a track so is not to be sniffed at.

    1. Yup, they’ll steer well clear of highlighting the problem.
      Wonder if they’ll mention what a sterling fellow is Erdogan tho?

  8. Covid Cowardism rears it’s head once again!

    1. No.

      https://travel.gc.ca/travel-covid/travel-restrictions/isolation

      “Federal quarantine applies for travellers entering Canada. If you can enter Canada and you have no symptoms, you must quarantine for a minimum of 14 days”

    2. I take it you haven’t lost anyone to Covid then Nige.
      By the way, going to Turkey at the moment will probably appease you I’m sure.

    3. @Nige You mean “governments complying with the rules they have themselves set and required everyone to obey, as expected by the people who elected them”, I’m sure.

    4. Nige, you sound like a fool. There is nothing cowardly about protecting people in this manner.

  9. Our loss, Canada is much better than Turkey.

    1. No it isn’t. Did you watch last years race?

      1. With those weather conditions, any track would have been just as interesting – even Monaco and Barcelona.

  10. And will the track get decent asphalt this time arround? I believe they put on regular highway asphalt last year.

  11. Are we missing something? I remember reading something about Canada demanding a race without spectators, and organizers demanding some form of compensation if that was the case.

    It wasn’t about the F1 people, who does a lot of Covid testing by the way.

    Or am I mistaking?

    1. Hotels, quarantine, etc.

    2. “The F1 people” in this case are relevant because there isn’t enough space in the schedule for them to spend 3 weeks in Canada (as opposed to the planned 1 week). Australia is likely to be in a better position, because I think it is likely the events in its projected quarantine window will be cancelled, if Australia’s even quarantining groups like F1 by that point.

  12. A release from Formula One today confirmed that the cancellation is due to an 14-day quarantine for people entering Canada

    So I take Turkey doesn’t have that kind of restriction. Given the number of COVID cases, maybe they should …

    1. Olivier There’s a lockdown right now that is incompatible with holding a Grand Prix (non-exempt business is required to be closed), but the projected end date is 17 May. So F1 are running on hope that by then, what they propose to do will be legal.

      I suspect that although the situation will be better by then, it is unlikely to be improved enough for even a closed-door race to occur.

  13. It’s a gamble. Turkey right now is locking down harder. Fingers crossed!

  14. Josh (@canadianjosh)
    28th April 2021, 21:34

    One positive thing I’ve learned through this pandemic is that I will never vote again for Conservative or Liberal after seeing this disgusting leadership struggle to vaccinate and get this country to where it should be. Doug Ford blames Trudeau and Trudeau blames Ford, pathetic leadership at a time like this and you end up with small disappointments such as the cancelled GP. And dont even get me started on the closure of golf courses…..

    1. @canadianjosh Lol that is sooooo how I feel too. Like you’ve read my mind or I yours.

      1. Josh (@canadianjosh)
        28th April 2021, 22:37

        Hahaha I think there’s many many people in Ontario who feel like we do right now!

    2. How can you expect them to be experts.? They’re Politicians, not Journalists.
      The real test will be to see if there is a CDN GP in 2022.

      1. Josh (@canadianjosh)
        28th April 2021, 22:44

        I’m just saying the current politicians making decisions and ordering vaccines are incompetent leaders who I wouldn’t dare vote into office ever again if I had that chance. Didn’t compare them to journalists or call them experts. Doug Ford is certainly not an expert when it comes time to explaining lockdown rules.

        1. @canadianjosh @rekibsn To be a bit more clear it is not even so much about the decision about the GP…that I get. And I think many of us were giving our provincial and the federal government pretty high marks for the first good number of months of the pandemic. For me it has been about the dropping of the ball since vaccines have been available and the lack of supply and the snails pace of administration that has been the disappointment. Whether or not a better job on that front would have held the variants at bay enough to have the race is an unknown.

          But other than that I’m having huge issues trusting Trudeau on several fronts, always have, and that feeling has only gotten worse over the months and years, and I’m finding nothing inspiring in Erin O’Toole either.

          1. Josh (@canadianjosh)
            29th April 2021, 0:05

            I expected the GP to be cancelled a month ago but your right, the issue isn’t so much canceling this or that, it’s more of an issue of where the heck are we going with the vaccines because most countries are vaccinating and returning to normal waaaay faster than us and for the taxes I pay and with prices skyrocketing for everything in this place, I expected a little better.

          2. If only Jack Layton hadn’t died young, we might have had decent leadership in this country.

          3. I second that emotion @ferrox-glideh

  15. Swapping one police state for the other.
    I wouldn’t have mind not having a race as well. These seasons are becoming very long in my opinion, and now with the sprint races there is a worry this is becoming too much of an endurance championship.

    1. Josh (@canadianjosh)
      28th April 2021, 23:59

      Police State? LOL

      1. @canadianjosh

        Forgive him, he thought they cancelled a second race at Bahrain in favor of the Miami GP.

        1. I’ve never thought or said that.

        2. Josh (@canadianjosh)
          29th April 2021, 9:26

          😂

      2. So freely surrendering your rights to meet people, families, dying relatives and being coerced into covering your mouth and face and take an experimental gene therapy is cool for you. Fair enough. Not me though.

        1. So, do you prefer a different sort of dictatorship that allows you to impose your values and opinions onto everyone else instead?

          When you have to interact with others, why do you have any more right to demand that they must yield to what you think and what you want to do than they have to demand that you compromise for them?

          As said in the past, you don’t want liberty – you want licence to demand that you are exempt from the obligations to others that come with civilization.

        2. experimental gene therapy

          I trust you work in the sciences Gmacz? I’m guessing probably not.

        3. Experimental gene therapy? What are you talking about? Someone has filled your head with false information.

    2. Are you really referring to Canada as a police state? That is truly a ridiculous thing to say!

  16. A shame to lose canada, but turkey was particularly good last year, so we’ll see what we get, the track resurfaced gave mercedes competitiveness issues and the rain made it very very interesting, love races where there’s water on track from start to end, the spray is nice too.

  17. Can Lewis drive in Turkey? That would undermine his whole social thing as the dictator leadership condones domestic violence ‘since it is tradition’?

    1. Hang on – isn’t Turkey about to go into hard lockdown because of a major 3rd wave of Coronavirus?

      1. @dbradock Yes, but at this point, only until May 17. Since F1 doesn’t have a guarantee Turkey will still be locked down by June 13th, its duties towards its stakeholders require it to take an offer by Turkey to host a race (if possible) seriously. While I expect the race in Turkey won’t happen either, Liberty is not at liberty to make that assumption officially.

  18. Well, I love Canada. But I do love Turkey more! What a track.

Comments are closed.