Saudi Arabia and the Formula 1 track in Jeddah are coming under more criticism at the weekend: the drivers are questioning the future of the race
Does Saudi Arabia still have a future in Formula 1? That’s the question drivers want to ask themselves after Friday’s rocket attack and ongoing concerns about track safety have made headlines so far this weekend.
On Friday evening there was a four-hour driver meeting, which lasted well into the night. It was also about a boycott of the race after Houthi rebels had attacked a factory building of Formula 1 premium sponsor Aramco and there was an explosion in the immediate vicinity of the race track in Jeddah.
On Saturday, Mick Schumacher had a serious accident and will miss Sunday’s race. This has again triggered discussions about safety, although there were modifications to the circuit before the weekend.
Marshals recover the remains of the car driven by Mick Schumacher, Haas VF-22, after a heavy crash in Q2
Photo: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images
All of this comes just days after Formula 1 boss Stefano Domenicali showed great interest with a Potential for 30 races had announced. But because according to the current Concorde agreement, a maximum of 25 races can be run, some races have to be left out.
The question is after the weekend: should Saudi Arabia be included? For Carlos Sainz, this is a question that Formula 1, the FIA and the drivers have to answer. “There will need to be discussion after the race as what has happened in the last 24 hours is definitely a conversation and something we need to consider going forward.”
Saudi Arabia has a lucrative deal with Formula 1 that is said to be worth around 600 million euros over ten years. This also includes a change of venue, which in the future is to be in Qiddiya instead of Jeddah.
The deal with Saudi Arabia brought some criticism to Formula 1 because the kingdom wants to use the event to “sportswash” while being denounced by many because of the human rights situation.
“I think there’s definitely some thinking we need to do as a group to see what’s best for the sport going forward,” says Sergio Perez, who agrees with Charles Leclerc: “I don’t want to go too much right now We’ll go into detail but it’s definitely a discussion that we should have after this race when everything settles down and then we’ll see how it goes.”
Domenicali recently warned that some current races will probably be dropped from the calendar to make room for new Grands Prix like Qatar or Las Vegas.
With images from Motorsport Images.
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