Formula One has announced that the 2022 season will have 22 races instead of the initially-planned 23. The Russian Grand Prix, which was taken off the calendar in February 2022, will not have a replacement.
The original schedule for the 2022 season had a total of 23 races, but following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the race in Sochi was taken off the calendar permanently. It was widely regarded that the Russian Grand Prix would be replaced with another race, but Formula One has now confirmed that it will be going ahead with a race less. The race in Sochi was also scheduled to be the last race to be held in Sochi, with the venue moving to Igora Drive near St. Petersburg, but Formula One eventually terminated the entire Grand Prix contract with the promoter.
It is reported that even though there were multiple host options, the added cost of bringing in a new race was one of the reasons why F1 decided against it. Given the already-in-place 22-race schedule and the workload for the teams, logistical concerns was also another reason in deciding against another race.
Singapore, which was the race after the Russian Grand Prix, was also in contention of hosting two races, but Formula One decided against it. The non-replacement of the Russian race weekend means now that the gap between the Italian Grand Prix on September 11 and the Singapore Grand Prix on October 2 is the longest in between races, apart from the summer break in August.
The 2022 season will end on November 20 in Abu Dhabi, ending a good two weeks earlier than the normal date, when the season finale usually takes place. This is due to the men’s football World Cup taking place in Qatar later this year. The Formula One 2022 season will be getting over a day before the World Cup starts, with the former’s organisers wanting to avoid a clash between the two sports. The 2023 season, though, will have a total of 23 races, including the second-ever Qatar Grand Prix following its debut in the 2021 season and the inaugural Las Vegas Grand Prix.
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