Due to recent civil unrest and bloodshed the 2011 Bahrain Grand Prix has been postponed. It’s important to distinguish between postponed and cancelled. It would seem likely the FIA and Bahrain Motor Federation will try and find a suitable time later in the year to re-schedule the race. The first race of the year will now be held in Melbourne on 27 March.
An official statement from the FIA is listed below:
Grand Prix of Bahrain
21/02/2011
The Federation Internationale de l’Automobile supports the decision of the Bahrain Motor Federation and the Bahrain International Circuit to postpone the scheduled first Grand Prix of the 2011 season due to be held in the Kingdom of Bahrain on March 11-13.
This decision is the outcome of the close co-operation between the FIA, Formula One Management, the Bahrain Motor Federation and the Bahrain International Circuit.
The FIA is Formula One’s governing body and is responsible for the international calendar as well as all matters of safety relating to the stakeholders involved in Grand Prix racing.
The pre-season testing originally scheduled for Bahrain will now take place in Barcelona between 8-11 March.
More detail to follow.
[Pic: Red Bull Racing/Getty Images]
UPDATE: Further comment is now available at Formula1.com.
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