F1 looks closely at the conflict in the Middle East
The escalation in the region and the war tension put the eye on the Grand Prix of Bahrain and Saudi Arabia and on the arrival of the paddock members to Australia for the first round of 2026.
Tension in the Middle East region is at its highest since the joint attack by the United States and Israel on Iran and the response of the Islamic Republic, which bombed areas of Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Qatar. The situation put the FIA and Formula 1 on alert because on April 12 the Bahrain GP will be held and seven days later the Saudi Arabia GP will be held in Jeddah.
In fact, this Saturday and Sunday, Pirelli had planned a tire test with McLaren and Mercedes, which had to be canceled and the members of the teams that were in Sakhir were looking for a way to leave Bahrain because the airspace was closed.
“Our next three races are in Australia, China and Japan, not the Middle East; those races will not take place for several weeks. As always, we closely monitor any situation like this and work closely with the relevant authorities,” FOM said. in statements collected on the PlanteF1 site.
On the other hand, regular F1 paddock personnel were preparing to travel to Australia for the first date of next weekend and had problems because those returning from Europe to Oceania usually stopover in Doha, Dubai or Abu Dhabi. Therefore, alternatives were sought.
