Bahrain Still Seeking to Get on the Formula 1 Calendar

Race organisers seek to hold Bahrain Grand Prix later in the year

20 April 2011

We all know what happened with the Bahrain Grand Prix but for those that have been living on the moon for the past few months

and have had a little bit of a signal problem retrieving any information regarding the unrest in the middle-east here is a quick recap. The Bahrain Grand Prix was set to be the first stop on the Formula 1 calendar but due to civil unrest in the country it was cancelled, or so we thought, by the Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa. It is unclear whether disputes in the country have actually been settled or whether they continue but I’m pretty sure they wouldn’t seek to continue the hosting of a Grand Prix if the country’s situation was anything but normal. We’re now 3 Grand Prixs into the Formula 1 season and space for another one is becoming scarce, obviously there will be a couple of weekend choices where a Grand Prix is not happening but again it’s all about the logistics of the event. It costs millions for the teams to move all the gear and cars and personnel to new venues and to suddenly have an unpredictable location from which they will be travelling may cause unnecessary pressure on all involved. I’m not trying to say here that I won’t welcome the opportunity to witness another great race on a fantastic track; all I hope is that if they do manage to squeeze the Grand Prix in anywhere they make it as smooth of a transition as possible. We won’t have to wait too long either; the FIA has given the Bahrain’s federation until the 1st of May to decide whether or not they can set a date for the event. So we were a bit late getting into the season but those thoughts have kind of dissipated now that the season is underway. We’ve finally been given the viewing pleasure we’ve all been craving for months and it’s already starting to shape up like a fantastic season. My only thoughts now are too the future and whether or not Bahrain will go ahead as scheduled. The thing with that race now is that it may land upon a date during a period of high temperatures in the country, landing around somewhere near the summertime, this may prove havoc with the tyres and definitely give an interesting race.