FIA adamant Qatar and Abu Dhabi GPs will go ahead
FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem is adamant that Formula 1's final two races in Qatar and Abu Dhabi will go ahead as planned, as F1 shifts its stance over the end of the 2026 campaign.
The situation in the Middle East remains volatile. Although the Israel/US-Iran conflict has not been so predominantly in news headlines of late, as the US mid-term elections approach, just last week two container ships were sunk near the strait of Hormuz after they were struck by missiles.
This came amid a sharp rise in Iranian shipping attacks in that conflict.
Separately, the Yemeni separatist group the Houthis have also targeted sites in Saudi Arabia - including Riyadh's international airport, killing at least 13 people - while in Israel settlers in the West Bank have also launches attacks on Palestinians and foreign nationals.
The initial indication in the F1 paddock was that there was a mid-September deadline for a firm decision on whether Qatar and Abu Dhabi would go ahead or whether standby option Imola would be deployed instead.
That then shifted to a mid-October decision.
In recent weeks the mood had shifted more towards an expectation that the races would happen as planned and that rather than there being a deadline for a firm decision and announcement, F1 personnel should assume Qatar and Abu Dhabi were going ahead unless told otherwise.
Ben Sulayem's comments to media including The Race on Tuesday fitted that stance.
After emphasising during a conversation about non-F1 events such as the upcoming Dakar Rally - due to run in Saudi Arabia in January - that "we have common sense here that we will never take our staff or drivers or any officials to a place where we feel it is risky - no way", he was asked if he felt Qatar and Abu Dhabi were "fine" to hold F1 races in at present.
"Yeah - fine," Ben Sulayem replied.
"One thing I would say: I have my children there [in the UAE]. You think I would leave them there and I'm here now with you [if it was dangerous]?
"You have to be sensible in this. Saying, 'Are we going to have an issue?' is one thing.
"But what you read in the media is actually different than what we have there. What we read and see on TV, we say, 'Where is it?' We don't have that, really. Otherwise why would I stay there? Why would I leave my family there?
"Does this say that there is nothing that is going to happen? I can't predict this.
"I can only tell you today that there is nothing and the two races are going to happen."
Asked if he was "confident and happy" for FIA staff to travel to the events, Ben Sulayem replied: "I am happy, yes of course. Listen, I don't think the FIA staff would be more important to me than myself or my family. But if I am there it means I feel secure about this."
He kept the door open to a change of plan, emphasising that the FIA had followed requests from Bahrain and Saudi Arabia when calling off their F1 races in April and then running the Bahrain-branded grand prix in Malaysia earlier this month.
Asked if Imola was still ready to step in as a season finale venue if needed, Ben Sulayem said: "Of course, the FIA is always ready."
He added that preparations had been made "to have another team from the FIA ready" in case any individual governments' travel restrictions or advice prevented any key FIA F1 personnel from attending the Qatar or Abu Dhabi races.
