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Formula 1 postponed the Australian Grand Prix from March to November because it would not have been possible for hundreds of team staff to self-quarantine for 14 days upon arrival, said Wednesday the Minister of Sport for the State of Victoria.
The Melbourne race is normally the start of the season, but was given a new date on November 21 in changes announced Tuesday to the 2021 schedule amid the COVID-19 crisis. The season will now begin in Bahrain on March 28.
The Australian Open tennis Grand Slam begins in Melbourne next month and Victoria’s Sports Minister Martin Pakula has said it is easier for the sport to deal with quarantine rules.
“Tennis has been able to do that … but it’s not something that has been possible for Formula 1,” Pakula told reporters.
“Under those circumstances… when you have the combination of that, the number of Australians coming back… in our opinion that made it possible to better organize a Grand Prix later in the year if that was possible.
“One of the perks of buying 10 months is that I suspect things will be different in November than they will be in January.”
Andrew Westacott, chief executive of the Australian Grand Prix Corporation, said preparations for the Formula 1 race would have been affected if it had taken place in March, with team staff spending most of their time in rooms hotel.
“When you look at the set-up arrangements of very large companies … and the logistics and challenges they face as a new season approaches, it was not possible to make them work in an arrangement strict quarantine, ”Westacott said.
Pakula said he hopes the race can return to its traditional location in 2022.
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