F1 has confirmed a 22-race calendar for 2022 season as they are not to replace the cancelled Russian GP with any other event.
After the cancellation of the Russian GP due to the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, an empty slot opened up on the F1 calendar around the races in Singapore and Japan. Several venues were rumoured to replace the grand prix.
Among them, Turkey, Qatar and Singapore (double) became hot favourites as a replacement event. But F1 has now confirmed that the cancelled Russian GP will not be replaced and the 2022 season will only have 22 grands prix instead of 23.
In a way, it is a welcome relief for teams and drivers considering the hectic schedule, especially in the second half of the year. But for the future, there is still chance of F1 to have 23 races or even more if it happens that way.
“The 2022 Formula 1 calendar will now run to 22 races rather than the originally planned 23, following the decision not to replace the Russian Grand Prix,” a statement from F1 stated. “It was announced on February 25 that, following meetings between Formula 1, the FIA and the teams, the championship would not race at the Russian Grand Prix in Sochi, which was set to be held on September 23-25.
“But it’s now been revealed that there will be no additional Grand Prix added to the calendar to fill the gap – meaning the 2022 calendar will run to 22 races.”