Formula 1 2021: Australian GP opening season should be postponed

The Australian GP was scheduled to open the 2021 season on March 21, but strict quarantine restrictions mean the race will likely be postponed until later in the year; Bahrain GP set to become first race on March 28

The 2021 Formula 1 season is unlikely to start with the Australian GP as planned, with the scheduled opening race to be postponed.

After a disrupted 2020 campaign due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the Albert Park Australian GP – which was canceled last year – was due to kick off a record-breaking 2021 season of 23 races on March 21.

But Sky Sports understands that he is now set to be postponed until later in the year due to new strict quarantine restrictions in Melbourne.

The Bahrain GP, ​​scheduled for March 28, is set to replace Australia at the start of the season.

Melbourne is preparing to host its first major international event for almost a year in February with the Australian Open tennis tournament, and the Victorian government has made a 14-day quarantine mandatory for all staff.

It is believed that F1 would be subject to the same rules – and a Grand Prix would not be viable under these circumstances.

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Sky Sports’ Martin Brundle said Lewis Hamilton’s knight title was’ very well deserved ‘after his record breaking season and praised the Formula 1 champion for using his position incredibly well.

A two-week quarantine for F1 staff would likely require them to travel three weeks before the race date, and F1’s only three-day pre-season test is currently scheduled for March 2-4.

An official postponement seems inevitable, which means the Bahrain GP is likely to open the campaign. Bahrain’s Sakhir Circuit has hosted two of the last three races of 2020 without a hitch.

“In 2020 we have proven that we can return to racing safely and achieved what many thought was impossible in March,” F1 said in a statement.

“We have established our 2021 schedule and look forward to the return of F1 in March of this year.”

What would the postponement mean for the 2021 F1 calendar?

After sort of achieving a 17-race schedule from July through December last year, a troubled start to the 2021 season is the last thing F1 would have wanted – and sport has confirmed Australia as the season opener. only a few weeks ago.

F1 is believed to be confident the race would be possible in March due to the local government’s handling of the pandemic so far, and confident in its own biosphere-based protocols which have worked so well in 2020.

But a two-week quarantine would not be viable for any of its 23 races, the most in an F1 season in the history of the sport.

The Melbourne event was called off last year just before Friday’s practice, sparking a wave of postponements and cancellations – although F1 is confident it won’t happen again in 2021.

A bigger concern is how they would fit into a rescheduled Australian GP in an already crowded 2021 schedule.

F1 will probably have to wait until after the summer break in August due to the weather in Australia. The second half of the season begins with two trebles – the first in Belgium, the Netherlands and Italy, followed by another in Russia, Singapore and Japan, separated by a week’s break.

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Premier League, Ryder Cup, The Lions, The Hundred and Formula 1 are among the live events on Sky Sports in 2021.

A free weekend will follow in October before back-to-back races in the US and Mexico, with Brazil a fortnight later on November 14. November 28 and December 5.

There is also still a 2021 question mark surrounding the fourth race – or third race if Australia is postponed – of the season, with Vietnam’s replacement yet to be confirmed.

Imola is the current favorite to take April 25’s place on the calendar.

A season opener from Sakhir could also cause pre-season testing – currently scheduled for Barcelona – to be moved to Bahrain to help travelers get around. It could also be pushed back closer to the race date of March 28.