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<\/p>\nFormula 1\u2019s season-ending Middle Eastern rounds have been plunged into fresh doubt after the World Endurance Championship cancelled races in Bahrain and Qatar overnight.<\/p>\n
The WEC had been scheduled to end its season with the Qatar 1812 Kilometres on 24 October and the 8 Hours of Bahrain on 7 November, but the FIA confirmed overnight that neither race would take place \u201cdue to the continued uncertainty in the region\u201d.<\/p>\n
The round in Qatar had already been postponed from its original season-opening March date after US and Israeli strikes on Iran conflagrated into the ongoing regional conflict.<\/p>\n
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Fox Sports, available on Kayo Sports, is the only place to watch every practice, qualifying session and race in the 2026 FIA Formula One World Championship\u2122 LIVE in 4K. New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1.<\/a><\/p>\n In a statement released overnight (Australian time), the FIA said that \u201cthe current regional security situation and its effect on freight and travel arrangements obliged the cancellation\u201d of the races.<\/p>\n \u201cThe safety of our teams, colleagues and motorsport fans remains our highest priority,\u201d said FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem. \u201cThese are never easy decisions, but protecting the wellbeing of our motorsport community will always come first.\u201d<\/p>\n Formula 1 is still planning on ending its season with the Qatar Grand Prix on 29 November and Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on 6 December.<\/p>\n A decision on whether those races go ahead can wait until as late as September, according to F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali, when sea freight will have to be dispatched<\/a>.<\/p>\n Conflict in the Strait of Hormuz and new uncertainty over access to the Red Sea could render both races inaccessible by ocean, though the sport has reportedly considered using air freight instead of sea freight if necessary, which would also buy it more time to make a decision.<\/p>\n Paddock consensus in Budapest at the weekend was that, on balance, both races are more likely to be called off than go ahead as things stand, with the long-anticipated decision of the World Endurance Championship the supporting evidence.<\/p>\n If the races are called off, Formula 1 is expected to replace both with a single round in Europe, with a return to Italy\u2019s Imola touted as the most likely alternative.<\/p>\n Portugal and T\u00fcrkiye are also in the mix, but reports suggest a December race for either would disrupt capital works planned ahead of both circuits returning to the calendar next season.<\/p>\n The fresh uncertainty follows news that Formula 1 has abandoned its attempt to reschedule the Bahrain Grand Prix on 4 October, having been optimistic of reinstating the race after the United States and Iran signed a ceasefire agreement in June.<\/p>\n The collapse of that agreement earlier this month forced a rethink, however, with Malaysia instead taking the slot sandwiched between the Azerbaijan and Singapore grands prix<\/a>.<\/p>\n The race will be called the Bahrain Grand Prix of Malaysia in recognition of the Bahraini government funding the event despite it taking place more than 6000 kilometres away.<\/p>\n Piastri rages at race-ruining incident | 03:07<\/p>\n SAINZ TAKEN TO TASK BY SOCIAL MEDIA AI BOT<\/p>\n Carlos Sainz has been bizarrely torched by an AI social media bot over an apparent attempt to minimise his unusual crash with Oscar Piastri at the weekend\u2019s Hungarian Grand Prix.<\/p>\n Piastri had just made his second pit stop from the lead of the race and was fast approaching the back of Sainz\u2019s Williams to lap him at the end of lap 37.<\/p>\n Sainz, however, appeared to ignore as many as eight blue light panels as well as a radio message from his engineer warning that a faster car was attempting to pass him. Typically three ignored blue lights will incur a penalty.<\/p>\n Instead the Spaniard continued battling with compatriot Fernando Alonso for 14th place all the way to the second corner of lap 38, where he took a wide line on exit.<\/p>\n Piastri moved to pass him down the inside, but Sainz collided with the McLaren as he attempted to resume the usual racing line, bumping the Australian off the road.<\/p>\n The time lost in the incident resulted in Piastri losing the lead of the race to Norris, who rejoined the grand prix ahead of his teammate after his stop one lap later.<\/p>\n Posting on social media to share his regular post-race press release, Sainz blamed the crash on a problem with the blue flags system and Piastri appearing out of view of his mirrors.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was shaping up to be a good race, but the blue flag system failed,\u201d Sainz wrote in Spanish<\/a>. \u201cOscar was in my blind spot when I was battling with Fernando and we made contact.\u201d<\/p>\n But the explanation raised the ire of an AI bot, which submitted a correction to his post via the X community notes feature.<\/p>\n \u201cThe FIA stewards determined that the team informed Sainz of the blue flags for car 81 and held him fully responsible for the collision, applying a 5-second penalty despite a mitigating factor of limited visibility,\u201d it wrote, also in Spanish<\/a>.<\/p>\n Enough real social media users agreed with the AI-generated note, leading to it being publicly affixed to Sainz\u2019s post.<\/p>\n The stewards deemed Sainz \u201cwholly responsible\u201d for the crash though chose to water down the standard 10-second penalty in recognition of Piastri being in the Williams driver\u2019s blind spot just before contact was made.<\/p>\n The failure of the automated blue flags system caused chaos for leaders and backmarkers for most of the Hungarian Grand Prix.<\/p>\n While trackside lights and flags are still the primary communication method, drivers are usually also warned via their steering wheel when they\u2019re about to be lapped by a faster car, ensuring that they understand the lights and flags are directed at them and not at another driver.<\/p>\n However, some drivers also reported that the trackside blue lights were flashing at random times, including when there were no cars behind them, resulting in a loss of trust in the system.<\/p>\n Instead drivers were had to rely on their race engineers informing them of approaching cars, as Sainz\u2019s engineer has done.<\/p>\n The incident triggered Mercedes boss Toto Wolff memorably likening rival engineers to Teletubbies<\/a> \u2014 the gibberish-speaking characters from 2000s British children\u2019s television \u2014 after several backmarkers had got in the way of Andrea Kimi Antonelli\u2019s late-race defence of third place ahead of Lewis Hamilton.<\/p>\n \u201cThe marshalling system was not functioning, and cars in the back defending [drivers on the lead lap] \u2026 it is just disgraceful from some of the Teletubbies engineers that sit on the pit walls of these teams not telling their drivers what\u2019s happening behind,\u201d he told Sky Sports.<\/p>\n Piastri was not mollified by Sainz\u2019s excuses, describing his behaviour as \u201cunacceptable\u201d and \u201cone of the dumbest things\u201d he\u2019d seen on a racetrack.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s quite critical of others,\u201d he said. \u201cOthers have given him some stick before for being frustrating on track. When you go and do something like that, I think maybe you should look in the mirror a bit,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n ‘Get out of the F***ing way you Idiot!’ | 00:46<\/p>\n NEW HONDA ENGINE GETS FIRST LAPS AHEAD OF AUGUST DEBUT<\/p>\n Aston Martin will get its first taste of Honda\u2019s new engine later today when it takes part in a filming day at the Hungaroring before the midseason break.<\/p>\n The new engine is an integral part of Aston Martin\u2019s midyear revolution to rescue itself from the dire competitive straits of the first 10 rounds of the season.<\/p>\n The first stage of that revolution was the 16-part upgrade package brought to the car for the Hungarian Grand Prix<\/a>, including a new, lighter chassis and several significant bodywork alterations.<\/p>\n