Formula 1 confirmed the cancellation of the Bahrain Grand Prix and Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, both scheduled for April 1. CEO Stefano Domenicali called it "a difficult decision to take" but "the right one" 2. The 2026 season drops to 22 rounds, with a five-week gap between the Japanese Grand Prix (27–29 March) and Miami (1–3 May). Neither race will be replaced.
Both circuits sit within range of Iranian ballistic missiles and drones. On the day F1 made its announcement, the IRGC launched its 48th wave of attacks across The Gulf. Bahrain, which hosts the Sakhir circuit, has absorbed over 75 missiles and 123 drones since 28 February . Saudi Arabia intercepted and destroyed six drones the same day.
The cancellations follow the ICC Cricket World Cup's relocation of UAE matches and the postponement of the Dubai World Cup horse race. Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, and Qatar invested billions over the past decade in sports and entertainment — golf, football, motorsport, horse racing — as the centrepiece of post-oil economic diversification. Those investments assumed a stable security environment.
Insurance underwriters and corporate risk teams are now making a different assessment. F1 can absorb two lost hosting fees. For The Gulf states, the cost is to the premise itself: that the region is stable, modern, and open for global business. The calendar's collapse is a proxy for commercial confidence — and commercial confidence, once lost during a war, does not return on a fixed schedule.
