The 2026 season will finish in Europe if the war in the Middle East wipes out the Qatar and Abu Dhabi rounds — but Formula 1 is not committing to a venue, and it is not committing to a decision until September either.
Stefano Domenicali set out the process during a summer-break media call. Both Gulf races technically remain on the schedule. Whether they survive is another matter.
"If the situation will not be clearer the way that we believe it should be before middle of September, we will make the decision," the F1 president and CEO said.
What happens after that decision is already narrowed down by geography. "In that case, the end of the season will be in Europe, because we cannot go to other places. So the season finale will eventually be in Europe," Domenicali told reporters including GPblog. "There are some possibilities on the table, but I don't think it's right to make some promises or anticipate certain things. That's the situation as of now."
Imola keeps coming up. Domenicali acknowledged it without confirming it: "Where the European race will be hosted, Imola is in the basket, but is not defined as Imola. It is the place."
Reporting from the Hungaroring, BBC F1 correspondent Andrew Benson rates Imola the most likely landing spot, with Portimao and Istanbul Park distant alternatives. Neither is straightforward — both have building work to complete ahead of their planned 2027 returns, and an unscheduled December race would complicate that considerably.
Which brings up the weather. A European Grand Prix at the tail end of the year invites scepticism about cold and damp. Domenicali pushed back with statistics.
"If I look at the temperature statistics in Europe during that period, it is less cool than the average temperature in Las Vegas while we are racing there," he said. "These are the numbers, I'm just telling you what we can share. No one knows what the temperature will be or what the weather will be like."
An American race after Las Vegas would have been simpler on freight and warmer on track. F1 has ruled it out over a scheduling clash rather than a sporting one.
"Of course, in that period of the year we are fighting in the U.S. against the NFL," said Domenicali. "That is a major sport. A lot of fans are watching that, so we need to avoid any kind of situation that would put us in front of something that, of course, is still very big in the US."
Circuit of the Americas boss Bobby Epstein was equally cool on the idea when Speed City Broadcasting asked whether Austin could take on another date.
"Well, I think we're happy with what we're doing now and our schedule is pretty full, so I don't think it's possible that it would happen after Vegas this year," Epstein said. "But the world's a dynamic place and if we can accommodate and help our partners with F1 we would do it. But I don't think that's on the cards this year."
The real driver here is contractual, not sporting. RACER's Chris Medland reports F1 is targeting a minimum of 22 races this season. Benson identifies 21 as the genuine cliff edge: fall below it and clauses kick in that could force F1 to hand rights fees back to broadcasters, with teams potentially facing similar sponsorship exposure.
Moving the Bahrain Grand Prix to Sepang on 2-4 October — a week ahead of Singapore — lifted the total to 23. One substitute race would therefore be enough to clear the threshold even if both remaining Gulf events are lost.
Domenicali held up the Malaysia solution as evidence the sport can improvise. "Once again, the sport has demonstrated its ability to adapt, find solutions, and deliver, creating an exciting moment for everyone who follows Formula 1," he said on confirming the move.
Next year's ambitions are unchanged regardless. "We have different plans with different options ready in place that will accommodate the fact that we will keep, in any case, the target of 24 Grands Prix for next year," Domenicali said. Portugal and Turkey are locked in for that calendar, due to be published in autumn.
