Pirelli: time has run out for a 2026 Bahrain return
Formula 1's hopes of bringing Bahrain back onto the 2026 calendar are fading fast: Pirelli says renewed Gulf hostilities have made tyre logistics all but impossible to plan.
Hopes of restoring the cancelled Bahrain GP to the 2026 calendar appear to have faded as Formula 1 grapples with renewed conflict in the Middle East.
Bahrain had emerged as the leading candidate to be restored to the 2026 calendar after the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian grands prix were cancelled when the Iran conflict erupted earlier this year. However, renewed hostilities across the Gulf have now cast fresh doubt over any reinstatement plans.
Pirelli motorsport director Dario Marrafuschi now says time has effectively run out.
"Preparing for a stage like this takes about four months - about 15 weeks for planning and transporting the tyres," he told Germany's motorsport-total.com.
"Clearly, we don't have that time right now."
Marrafuschi said the deteriorating security situation makes planning impossible.
"Unfortunately, it is still impossible to predict how stable the situation in the Middle East will be, or whether the transit of cargo ships on which we ship tyres will be possible."
"We could go through the Suez Canal and then cross Saudi Arabia from Jeddah towards the rest of the Middle East by land, but since the security situation in Saudi Arabia is also tense, this remains purely theoretical."
"Unfortunately, uncertainty is the dominant factor at the moment."
"I can't say how long it will take to reach a potential race in the Middle East, partly because even if we manage to bypass Africa, we'll still need to know whether the Strait of Hormuz is open."
With Qatar scheduled for November 27-29 and Abu Dhabi for December 4-6, Marrafuschi's four-month lead-time warning means planning for those races must effectively be settled now as well.
Related: Bahrain still hopeful of 2026 F1 return amid Gulf unrest
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Certainly impossible for early-October due to sea freight lead time & even for the season’s end, when the Qatar & Abu Dhabi GPs should take place, but all three are effectively off due to their geographical locations.
Jeddah’s location is more favorable, but even rescheduling the Saudi Arabian GP isn’t guaranteed to be viable.