Formula 1 sets mid-September deadline over possible Qatar and Abu Dhabi race move to Europe

Formula 1 has set a mid-September deadline to decide whether its final two races of the season in Qatar and Abu Dhabi can go ahead, or whether they will be moved to Europe. The sport's chief executive, Stefano Domenicali, said the current plan is still for the Qatar Grand Prix on 29 November and the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on 6 December. He added that if the races cannot be staged in the Middle East, the season will end in Europe.

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Domenicali said the races in Qatar and Abu Dhabi are currently confirmed and already sold out. He told reporters that the series would take as much time as possible before making a final call, but that the deadline for any calendar change is the middle of September. The comments come as Formula 1 continues to assess the impact of the wider conflict in the region on its schedule.

The possibility of a move follows earlier disruption to the calendar. Races scheduled for Saudi Arabia and Bahrain in April were called off because of the war in Iran, and the Bahrain Grand Prix was transferred to Malaysia's Sepang circuit for 4 October. The FIA-sanctioned World Endurance Championship has also already shifted its final two rounds away from the Gulf, moving them to Barcelona and Monza later in the year.

The issue matters because Formula 1's calendar is built around a tightly managed global schedule, with major commercial and logistical consequences if races are moved at short notice. Qatar and Abu Dhabi are among the sport's key late-season events, and both are part of a broader run of Middle East races that have become important to the championship in recent years. Any relocation would affect teams, organisers, broadcasters and ticket holders, while also signalling how far the conflict is continuing to reshape international sport in the region.

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Domenicali said Italy's Imola circuit is among the possible replacement venues if a change is needed. He noted that Imola, which was removed from the calendar this year, remains under consideration despite concerns about the weather at that time of year. He also said there had been discussion about ending the season in Las Vegas, but that the sport did not want to damage a race he described as still developing.

For now, the Qatar and Abu Dhabi races remain on the calendar, and Formula 1 says it will wait as long as possible before making a final decision. The key question is whether conditions in the region allow the events to proceed as planned before the mid-September deadline. If they do not, the sport has indicated that Europe would host the season finale instead.

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