Domenicali hopeful Bahrain Grand Prix can be added back to 2026 calendar

Formula 1 is exploring the possibility of restoring the Bahrain Grand Prix to the 2026 calendar after the race was cancelled earlier this season due to conflict in the Middle East.

Speaking to Sky Sports F1 during the British Grand Prix weekend, Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali confirmed that the sport remains hopeful of finding space in the calendar for one of the cancelled events, with Bahrain believed to be the preferred choice.

"If there is something that we can announce also related to the possibility of seeing if there is any space for what has not been done so far, we're going to do it, in the right moment and the right conditions," Domenicali said.

"That is really the hope, because if all the conditions are right, we're going to go ahead with our plan. If there is a chance, why not?"

Both the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix, originally scheduled for April, were cancelled because of the security situation in the Middle East. At the time, Formula 1 did not indicate that either event would be rescheduled.

According to Sky Sports F1, Bahrain could return on the weekend of 2–4 October, filling a gap between the Azerbaijan and Singapore Grands Prix. If the plan is to go ahead, however, Domenicali stressed that a final decision must be made before Formula 1's summer break, which begins after the Hungarian Grand Prix on 26 July.

"I think that the gap to do the eventual possibility of doing one of the races that we have not done, we need to do it before the summer break," he explained.

Domenicali also expressed confidence that the final two races of the season, in Qatar and Abu Dhabi, will proceed as scheduled despite concerns caused by the recent regional conflict.

"Our duty is to make sure we are ready to run our calendar as it is planned. And we are monitoring the situation because it would be an incredibly positive message for sport, and also politically, that we are moving in this direction, because if this is happening, it is something we can say is behind us," the F1 boss added.