The Bahrain Grand Prix will stay on the 2026 Method 1 calendar, however the race will as a substitute be held on the Sepang Worldwide Circuit. Whereas it might appear uncommon, it’s removed from the primary time in Method 1 historical past that one nation has hosted a Grand Prix carrying the identify of one other.
Method 1 not too long ago confirmed that the Bahrain Grand Prix will go forward regardless of the modifications to the calendar. The occasion has been rescheduled for early October and can kind a part of a triple-header with the Azerbaijan and Singapore Grands Prix. Nonetheless, as a substitute of being held on the Bahrain Worldwide Circuit, the race will happen at Malaysia’s Sepang Worldwide Circuit whereas retaining the Bahrain Grand Prix identify. Historical past, nonetheless, gives a number of comparable examples, though some should not fully comparable.
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San Marino GP – Italy
Maybe the best-known instance is the San Marino Grand Prix. Regardless of its identify, the race was by no means held in San Marino itself, however at Imola in Italy from 1981 to 2006. Since Method 1 already had the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, the second Italian occasion adopted the identify of the neighbouring microstate.
Imola returned to the Method 1 calendar after the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, as soon as once more turning into Italy’s second race alongside Monza. From 2020 till final season, nonetheless, the occasion was run because the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix relatively than reviving the San Marino Grand Prix identify.
Method 1 in Imola – Picture: RacePictures
Method 1 in Imola – Picture: RacePictures
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Luxembourg GP – Germany
One other notable instance is the Luxembourg Grand Prix, which was held at Germany’s Nürburgring in 1997 and 1998. With the German Grand Prix already happening at Hockenheim, Method 1 gave the Nurburgring occasion the Luxembourg Grand Prix identify to permit the nation to host a second race. Jacques Villeneuve gained the inaugural version in 1997, whereas Mika Hakkinen claimed victory a 12 months later.
Swiss GP – France
The Swiss Grand Prix of 1982 is likely one of the most outstanding examples in Method 1 historical past of a race being held exterior the nation whose identify it carried. Though it was formally listed because the Swiss spherical of the World Championship, the occasion befell fully on the Dijon-Prenois circuit in France.
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The bizarre state of affairs stemmed from Switzerland’s ban on circuit racing, launched within the wake of the 1955 Le Mans catastrophe. With everlasting circuit occasions not permitted contained in the nation, Method 1 was unable to return to Swiss territory for many years. When the organisers determined to revive the Swiss Grand Prix in 1982, that they had no alternative however to discover a venue overseas. Dijon-Prenois, situated in jap France not removed from the Swiss border, was chosen to host the race, permitting the occasion to retain the Swiss Grand Prix identify regardless of being run fully on French soil.
European GP – Azerbaijan
Though indirectly similar to the earlier three examples, one other attention-grabbing case got here in 2016, when Method 1 made its debut on the streets of Baku. Regardless of the race happening in Azerbaijan, the occasion was formally referred to as the European Grand Prix relatively than the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
The selection mirrored the nation’s need to strengthen its affiliation with Europe because it continued to host main worldwide occasions. In consequence, Method 1 introduced again the European Grand Prix identify for Baku’s first look on the calendar. The association lasted for only one season, with the race being renamed the Azerbaijan Grand Prix from 2017 onwards, the title it continues to hold as we speak.
