Formula 1 Won't Replace the Canceled Chinese Grand Prix

I miss China’s space-age mushrooms.

The “will they, won’t they” dance around the Chinese Grand Prix has been ongoing for what seems like forever. The event was first canceled in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and Formula 1 hasn’t raced there since. Now, after the event made a brief appearance on the 24-race-strong 2023 calendar, F1 has once again confirmed that the Chinese Grand Prix won’t, in fact, take place this year.

Formula 1 was slated to make its long-awaited return to China on April 16th, 2023, according to the initial F1 schedule released last year. But the event, which would have been F1’s first race in Shanghai since 2019, was pulled from the schedule last month.

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F1 and the FIA cited Covid-19 restrictions in China as the reason for its cancellation. The country announced it was taking a “zero approach” to Covid-19 as cases began to rise once more, which meant the return of widespread lockdowns and mandatory isolation for anyone infected with the virus.

Every F1 car livery looked better in 2019, and you can’t convince me otherwise.

Following backlash against the policies, China has backtracked on some of these measures. This led outsiders to believe the Chinese event could make a comeback later in the season. But, in a very un-imaginative statement, Formula 1’s organizers said that wouldn’t be the case. The statement said:

The removal of China from the calendar, and F1’s quite sensible decision not to replace it with yet another race, means there’s now a three-week gap between the Australian Grand Prix on April 2nd and the next round in Baku on April 30th.

The latest update to the F1 schedule means there will now be one more race this year, compared to 2022. The 23 races being held this year include a new event in Las Vegas as well as Formula 1’s return to Qatar.

Last time F1 raced in China, this guy had just five race wins. Now he has 35.

To make space for these new events, the 2023 calendar will miss the French Grand Prix for the first time since 2020, when it was pulled from the schedule due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The 2023 Formula 1 calendar includes:

Bahrain, March 3rd - 5th

Saudi Arabia, March 17th - 19th

Australia, March 31st - April 2nd

Azerbaijan, April 28th - 30th

Miami, May 5th - 7th