According to a media report, Saudi Arabia was determined to hold on to the Grand Prix in April and allegedly offered Formula 1 special security guarantees
The Formula 1 races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia cannot take place in April as planned. The current war in the Middle East means that it will not be possible to hold the two Grands Prix safely in a few weeks’ time.
Sport Bild now reports in the current issue that Saudi Arabia in particular is said to have tried to prevent a cancellation at all costs. The talks focused on security guarantees for the premier class.
The report states that Saudi Arabia “offered Formula 1 the prospect of a special missile defense system for the Jeddah Corniche Circuit”. However, this did not lead to the Grand Prix taking place after all.
FIA President Mohammed bin Sulayem justified the cancellation of the two races a few days ago as follows: “The FIA will always put the safety and well-being of our community and our colleagues first.”
“We made this decision after careful consideration and we were fully aware of this responsibility,” said the President. Bahrain and Saudi Arabia have been repeatedly bombarded with drones and missiles from Iran since the start of the war.
Formula 1 already had experience of a missile attack in Jeddah in 2022. Back then, Houthi rebels fired on a factory belonging to the oil company Aramco during the Grand Prix weekend.
At the time, there were also lengthy discussions about canceling the weekend, but in the end the Grand Prix went ahead as planned. Four years later, the decision has now been made to cancel the race in advance.
Formula 1 is expecting a break of more than a month after the Japanese Grand Prix in Suzuka (March 29) as a result of the cancellation of the two races. It will not resume until five weeks later with the Miami Grand Prix in the USA (May 3).