F1 2027 calendar: Bahrain back as season opener after 2-year gap; uncertainty looms over Middle East races

Formula 1 is set to begin its 2027 season in Bahrain, despite continued uncertainty over whether this year’s remaining Middle East races will go ahead.

F1 announced its 24-race calendar for 2027 on Wednesday, with the Bahrain Grand Prix scheduled for 14 March, followed by the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix a week later.

Qatar and Abu Dhabi are also set to host races towards the end of the season. All four venues have long-term agreements with Formula 1, while Bahrain will also stage preseason testing in February.

The Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grand Prix were cancelled this year amid the Iran war. As a result, Malaysia will host an additional race next month, which will carry the Bahrain Grand Prix branding.

The Qatar Grand Prix, scheduled for 29 November, and the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on 6 December remain on the 2026 calendar.

Formula 1 has explored the possibility of moving the races to European venues if they cannot be held in the Middle East, although tickets for both events are still available for purchase.

Bahrain has traditionally hosted the opening race of the F1 season in recent years. It lost that slot in 2025 and 2026 because the calendar had to be adjusted to avoid a clash with Ramadan.

The 2027 calendar also avoids overlapping with two major events in the motorsport calendar: the Indianapolis 500 on 30 May and the 24 Hours of Le Mans on 12-13 June. Formula 1 races were held on the same weekends as both events this year.

Four-time F1 world champion Max Verstappen has previously expressed his desire to compete at the 24 Hours of Le Mans at some point in the future.

More sprint races, including in Monaco

F1 is also expanding from six to 10 sprint races in 2027, including a first at the Monaco Grand Prix, where overtaking is almost impossible.

A sprint is also scheduled for the season-opening race in Bahrain. That would mark the first time an F1 season has begun with a short-format race before the first Grand Prix of the year.

F1 said race weekends that featured sprint races attracted an average viewership that was 12% higher than those without sprints.

By increasing their number, F1 is “giving our fans even more intensity, drama, and the wheel-to-wheel action that make our sport so special,” chief executive Stefano Domenicali said.

F1 returns to Portugal in June for the first time since 2021 as the Portimao circuit replaces the Dutch Grand Prix, while the Turkish Grand Prix is also back in October 2027 after signing a five-year contract in April.

There will be no race at the Circuit de Catalunya near Barcelona for the first time since 1990. It lost the title of Spanish Grand Prix to Madrid this year but stayed on under Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix branding. It will now alternate with the Belgian Grand Prix and next returns in 2028.

Security concerns regarding Middle-East races

There was no indication on Wednesday that F1 is any closer to calling off or moving the Qatar or Abu Dhabi races.

Among potential alternatives in Europe, a season-ending race at Italy’s Imola circuit is widely considered the likeliest option. Domenicali indicated in July that a decision could come in mid-September.

The races in the Middle East are especially valuable for F1 and its teams. They contribute large hosting fees to F1, while Saudi Arabia’s state-owned oil giant Aramco and Qatar Airways are major sponsors for the series.

Next week’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix will be the closest F1 has been to Iran since the outbreak of the war earlier this year.

Azerbaijan shares a land border with Iran. FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem defended the wait for confirmation on this year’s races in an interview this month with The Associated Press, arguing F1 was right not to “jump the gun” on deciding.

“Are we going to allow our people, our staff, the drivers or the teams to go at risk? No, of course not. We will not,” he added.

Speculation over possible changes to this year’s Qatar and Abu Dhabi races heightened this week as Formula 2, which is due to support F1 in both venues, added an extra race to its schedule next week in Azerbaijan. F2 said it would still race in Qatar and Abu Dhabi with a “usual weekend format”.