A 23-race calendar planned for 2021

While the Coronavirus pandemic is experiencing an alarming rebound, particularly in Europe, and has already forced some of the last Grands Prix of the season not to welcome the public, those responsible for the Formula 1 still try to project themselves into the future. 

Last Monday, the F1 commission met for 6 hours to discuss various issues, including the outlines of the 2021 calendar. A first draft was thus “ mentioned and not presented » says one of our usual interlocutors. 

Quite surprisingly, this provisional program bears a striking resemblance to what the 2020 campaign was supposed to be like before the outbreak of Covid-19 turned everything upside down. 

No less than 23 dates are thus envisaged, the 22 which were to make up a record calendar in 2020, to which is added an unprecedented meeting in Saudi Arabia. Another source reminds us that the new Concorde Agreements, ratified last summer by all 10 teams, make it possible to increase the calendar to 25 races. 

The Saudi event would take place in the streets of the city of Jeddah pending the construction of a permanent circuit in Qiddiya, where a gigantic complex dedicated to entertainment is to be built. 

The country, which is trying to diversify its growth levers beyond simple oil revenue and to modify its international image through the organization of sporting events, is already receiving the Formula e in its capital Riyadh, as well as the famous Paris-Dakar. 

This season, the oil company Aramco became the 6th main partner of Formula 1 through the signing of a major sponsorship agreement. The urban event in Jeddah would be organized at the end of the year and coupled with the meeting in Abu Dhabi, which has closed the season for several years. 

• As if nothing had happened, or almost

At the other end of the calendar, we would find Australia for a kick-off at the traditional Albert Park in Melbourne at the end of March. A decision that is surprising to say the least when we remember the fiasco caused by the last minute cancellation of the 2020 edition after the discovery of a case of Covid-19 within the team McLaren. 

However, stakeholders have since put in place very strict health protocols which allow the 2020 season to take place without too many pitfalls, including when drivers undergo a positive test. 

The Australian meeting would be coupled with that of Bahrain before a first Asian tour in China and Vietnam, which this year was to host the first GP in its history in the streets of the capital Hanoi. 

A source told us that several promoters, particularly those whose races are scheduled at the start of the year, were pushing hard to try to postpone their event to the second half of the season, in the hope that the health crisis would resolve by now. there.

Zandvoort (Netherlands), whose return to the F1 menu was planned for the first weekend of May this year, would thus be postponed to the end of summer, to a date close to that of Spa-Francorchamps ( Belgium). 

For the rest, the program would more or less resemble the 2020 calendar in its initial version, with some uncertainty however around the Brazilian meeting. The Interlagos circuit (São Paulo) must in fact be replaced by a new circuit in Rio de Janeiro. The construction of this track has not yet started and the project has not failed to arouse the ire of local residents and environmental defense associations because it involves the felling of thousands of trees. 

• Chimera or Realpolitik?

In view of the current situation, such a calendar seems very ambitious, not to say chimerical, but perhaps F1 has no other choice at the moment than to show its desire to honor juicy contracts. 

« We can imagine that the same causes would produce the same effects » underlines an influential player in the paddock when asked if the 2021 program could refocus on Europe in the absence of tangible improvement in the health context. 

This same interlocutor explains to us that F1 has become too dependent on the huge fees paid by promoters, particularly those from “exotic” destinations. This source thus estimates that a drastic reduction in the lifestyle of the premier category would allow it to once again go to spectacular circuits such as Mugello (Italy) and Portimão (Portugal), whose debut in the world championship this year was were greeted by all.