The pandemic required changes to the format of a race weekend, which included abandoning the drivers' parade and pre-race assembly for the host venue's national anthem. A modified podium ceremony was planned for after races. The FIA introduced limits to the number of team personnel who could be on the starting grid to prepare cars and changed the cut-off times for cars to leave pit lane to minimise the amount of time team personnel spent on the grid. Tyre supplier Pirelli was also required to provide an identical allocation of tyre compounds to all teams and drivers. Where Pirelli were previously required to announce compounds for a race several weeks in advance, this window was reduced to two weeks, allowing them to respond to anticipated changes to the calendar.
The delayed season started with the Austrian Grand Prix. This promoted Verstappen to second, McLaren driver Lando Norris to third, and Alexander Albon to fourth. In an eventful race, featuring three safety car periods and the retirements of nine drivers, Bottas won, ahead of the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc and Norris.
The season-opening Australian Grand Prix was expected to go ahead and all teams and drivers arrived at the venue as planned. Three days before the race was due to take place, McLaren announced their withdrawal from the event after a team member tested positive for the virus. This led to the Grand Prix being cancelled altogether the following morning. Later that day, it was announced that the Bahrain Grand Prix would be postponed rather than closed to spectators, as would the inaugural Vietnamese Grand Prix.
"This season has been incredible so far with great battles on the track, large audiences tuning in and fans returning to the races after the impact of the pandemic. The 2020 United States Grand Prix was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic, but the event returned in 2021 with a sell-out crowd in attendance. Over 400,000 fans flocked to the circuit over the race weekend, making it one of Formula 1's best attended events in history. With the sport's popularity rising, the United States Grand Prix is joined by a second race in America from 2022 onwards. The inaugural Miami Grand Prix is set to take place in May. Hamilton was ruled out of the Sakhir Grand Prix after testing positive for the coronavirus and was replaced by Williams' George Russell.
Russell impressed by taking the lead from new teammate and pole-sitter Bottas and led for 59 laps, before being taken out of contention by first a tyre mix-up by Mercedes and then a late-race puncture, eventually finishing 9th. Despite being dropped to last position through a lap 1 collision with Leclerc and Verstappen, Pérez took his first race victory, followed by Esteban Ocon taking his first podium finish in 2nd and Stroll finishing 3rd. With his win, Pérez took the record for the most race starts before a first victory, with 190 race starts, beating Mark Webber's record of 130 starts before his win at the 2009 German Grand Prix.
The inaugural Tuscan Grand Prix, Ferrari's 1000th Grand Prix start, resulted in Hamilton's sixth race win of the season, and Mercedes's third 1–2 finish. Bottas overtook Hamilton into turn one before a major collision at turn two caused the retirement of both Verstappen and Gasly. This brought out the safety car for 8 laps to allow for the debris to be cleared. At the end of the safety car period, a major misunderstanding in the upper midfield led to a large collision down the pit straight, causing the retirement of Nicholas Latifi, Kevin Magnussen, Giovinazzi and Sainz Jr., and a red flag period. At the first restart, Hamilton overtook Bottas and led the race from there onwards.
On lap 42, Ricciardo looked poised for his first podium since the 2018 Monaco Grand Prix when Stroll's Racing Point spun off the track due to a puncture, causing the second red flag of the race. This was the first time since the 2016 Brazilian Grand Prix that there were two red flag periods in one race. At the second restart, Hamilton maintained his lead to win the race.
Red Bull's Alexander Albon overtook Ricciardo in the closing laps, earning his first ever podium and the first podium for a Thai driver in Formula One. The Belgian Grand Prix was won by Lewis Hamilton, who led every lap and won by 8 seconds over teammate Valtteri Bottas who finished second ahead of Max Verstappen. Daniel Ricciardo finished fourth, setting the fastest lap on the last lap. On lap 11, Antonio Giovinazzi crashed at Campus corner; one of the wheels of his car came loose and hit the front right suspension of George Russell's car, causing both drivers to retire from the race.
Renault achieved a finish of P4 and P5, equalling their best result since their return to the sport in 2016. In early April, Ross Brawn suggested that a rescheduled calendar of 18 or 19 races would be possible should racing begin in July, and that the opening round "is most likely to be in Europe", potentially without spectators. He also raised the possibility of Grand Prix events being reduced to two days in order to ease pressure on logistical operations. However, Alfa Romeo Racing managing director Frédéric Vasseur cautioned that a condensed calendar could escalate the costs of competing and put smaller teams at risk of financial collapse. ], who pointed out that the race sanctioning fees paid by event organisers contributed to the prize money awarded to all teams at the end of the year.
This money is awarded proportionally based on the teams' World Constructors' Championship positions and forms a significant part of a team's budget for the upcoming year. With fewer races and the prize structure remaining fixed, teams were concerned that they would suffer a significant financial loss. Twenty-two Grands Prix were originally scheduled for the 2020 World Championship. However, the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in numerous race cancellations and postponements. A rescheduled calendar consisted of seventeen Grands Prix, nine from the original 2020 calendar and eight other Grands Prix, while the other thirteen original 2020 races were cancelled. This also meant that the season started with two races in Austria, and later on in the season there were also two races at Silverstone Circuit along with two races at Bahrain International Circuit.
Each race is the minimum number of laps that exceeds a total distance of 305 km (189.5 mi). Under the sporting regulations, a minimum of eight races must take place for the season to be considered a championship. Later in July, the return of the Nürburgring and the Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari in Imola to the calendar was revealed, along with the debut of the Algarve International Circuit. These races were named the Eifel and Emilia Romagna Grands Prix respectively, with the return of the Portuguese Grand Prix for the first time since the 1996 season. The Emilia Romagna Grand Prix took place over a shortened two-day weekend, with a single 90 minute practice session taking place on Saturday morning. This marks the first race at the Nürburgring since 2013 and at Imola since 2006, and also the first time that a country hosts three Grands Prix since the 1982 season.
They join the rescheduled Bahrain and Abu Dhabi Grands Prix as the final four races of the season, bringing the calendar to seventeen races. In a statement in late April, Formula One CEO Chase Carey declared the intention to begin the season on 5 July and a target to hold between 15 and 18 races overall. In June, the first eight races of a rescheduled calendar were confirmed, with the season expected to begin on 5 July with the Austrian Grand Prix. This revised calendar included two newly named one-off events — both second races at the Red Bull Ring and Silverstone — known as the Styrian and the 70th Anniversary Grands Prix respectively. F1® 2020 allows you to create your F1® team for the very first time and race alongside the official teams and drivers.
Alternatively, challenge your friends in new split-screen with casual race options for more relaxed racing. Compete on 22 circuits, with current and classic content. Once you have Sky Signature, you can add Sky Sports F1 to your TV. Sky Sports F1 is the official broadcaster of every F1 race of the 2021 season. You can watch every practice, qualifying session and race live in HD.
This package costs £18/mth on a rolling 31-day contract. Alternatively, new customers can get Sky TV and Sky Sports F1 for £43/mth. However, this will tie down to an 18-month contract and you'll need to pay a one-time setup fee of £20. The 2020 FIA Formula One World Championship was the motor racing championship for Formula One cars which was the 71st running of the Formula One World Championship.
It marked the 70th anniversary of the first Formula One World Drivers' Championship. The championship was recognised by the governing body of international motorsport, the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile , as the highest class of competition for open-wheel racing cars. Drivers and teams competed for the titles of World Drivers' Champion and World Constructors' Champion respectively. Using the links above you can find the full weekend schedule, including details of practice and qualifying sessions, support races, press conferences and special events, plus the latest news headlines, circuit information and F1 race results. Ultimately, it will all come down to the finest of margins at Yas Marina, where drivers will race a newly shortened circuit – adding another unknown to an already nail-biting finale. All this leaves the season's two protagonists locked on 369.5 points apiece.
Verstappen is still officially ahead on race wins, but everything is now set up for a dramatic final showdown in Abu Dhabi to decide who is the 2021 F1 champion. In what was the inaugural Saudi Arabia Grand Prix, the on-track action was the most dramatic of the year so far featuring three virtual safety car periods, two race-stopping crashes and a major incident between Verstappen and Hamilton. After cutting a corner on a previous lap, Verstappen was ordered to give first position back to Hamilton, only to then erratically break and cause Hamilton to drive into the back of him.
The British driver recovered and eventually took first place comfortably ahead of Red Bull's Dutch-Belgian, who finished second. Steve Jones, David Coulthard and Mark Webber present highlights of the final race of the F1 season, the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The longest season in the sport's history comes to an end and with all the twists and turns this year has seen, the race in Abu Dhabi should bring a dramatic climax as the teams and drivers make a last-ditch grab for points. The change means that there are currently 18 Grands Prix still to be held in the season, but it is expected that a new calendar, featuring some back-to-back races at European circuits, will be announced in the next few weeks.
Currently the Austrian Grand Prix date on July 5th is still set to be the first round of the season, with F1 bosses discussing how to host as many races as possible in 2020. Imola's round will also see a new format for a Grand Prix weekend, with the whole even compressed into just two days. AS the Portuguese and Emilia Romagna Grands Prix will run back-to-back and are 1,500 miles apart, F1 has decided to compress the schedule at Imola to give the teams and extra day to make the journey.
Details of how this new format will work are yet to be announced, but it is expected that there will be only one free practice session before qualifying. There's been a lot of uncertainty this year, so to know exactly which circuits F1 will visit and when the season will end is good news for fans and teams alike. Following in the trend of other recent race reveals, this announcement includes a new track for F1 teams to get their heads around.
Verstappen's eighth win of the season saw the Dutchman extend his lead at the top of the drivers' championship to 12 points with five races of the season remaining. And with the next two rounds in Mexico and Brazil expected to favour Red Bull, there are some who believe the championship is as good as over. Chadwick, a 23-year-old English native, cruised across the finish line almost five seconds ahead of second-place Abbi Pulling with a blistering time of 2 hours, 6.464 minutes. Chadwick also won the first of the two W Series races Saturday while clinching the series' season title. She ended the season with 159 points while season-long rival Alice Powell completed the campaign with 132 points. At the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Hamilton returned for the last race of the season after testing negative for the coronavirus.
Verstappen took the pole position and his 10th win in Formula One ahead of Bottas and Hamilton, who finished second and third, respectively. This race was the last for Vettel at Ferrari, after six years, and Pérez at Racing Point, after two years at Racing Point and five at their indirect predecessor, Force India. It was also the last race at Haas for Kevin Magnussen after seven years in Formula One. Ferrari finished sixth in the World Constructors' Championship, their worst championship result since 1980 when they finished tenth. The Turkish Grand Prix saw Hamilton claim his seventh world title with a race win, equalling Michael Schumacher's record for the most Formula One world titles.
He finished on the podium with Sergio Pérez and Sebastian Vettel, whilst in qualifying, Lance Stroll claimed his maiden pole position in rainy conditions. At the inaugural Eifel Grand Prix, five cars retired in the forms of Russell, Esteban Ocon, Albon, Lando Norris and Bottas, who had started from pole. Hamilton took first place after Bottas locked up into turn 1 on lap 13. Hamilton would go on to win the race, his 7th win this season.
Ricciardo claimed his first podium for Renault, finishing the race in third. The race also saw Räikkönen pass the record for most race starts. Drivers who participated in free practice sessions were eligible for additional FIA Super Licence points. Any driver who completed a minimum 100 km during a free practice session received an additional Super Licence point on the condition that they do not commit a driving infraction. Drivers could only accrue ten Super Licence points across a three-season period from free practice sessions. The rules around helmet designs were relaxed with drivers allowed to change their design as many times as they wanted between races, having previously been restricted to a base design and one permitted major design change since 2015.
Several further changes were made between the 2019 and 2020 calendars, with the German Grand Prix discontinued and the Mexican Grand Prix planned to be rebranded as the Mexico City Grand Prix before it was cancelled. A day before the British Grand Prix weekend, Racing Point driver Sergio Pérez tested positive for the coronavirus and was ruled out of the race weekend. After seeking clarification from Public Health England, Racing Point stated that they intended to let Pérez race in the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix pending a negative coronavirus test. This re-test came back positive and so Pérez was also unable to take part in the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix. He was replaced for both races by Nico Hülkenberg, who had raced for the team's predecessor Force India in 2012 and from 2014 to 2016, and last raced in Formula One at the 2019 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Pérez had a negative coronavirus test result the week preceding the Spanish Grand Prix weekend and he competed in the Grand Prix having been cleared by the FIA to return. Pérez's Racing Point teammate Lance Stroll felt ill prior to the Eifel Grand Prix and tested positive for the coronavirus on the day of the race. The championship was originally due to start in March, but the start was postponed until July in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The season was due to be contested over a record of 22 Grands Prix, but as some races were cancelled and new races were added to replace them, a total of 17 races were run. The season started in July with the Austrian Grand Prix and ended in December with the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the first eight rounds of the championship were run behind closed doors, with the rest of the races being run at a reduced capacity or also behind closed doors due to the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.
O Esports - in-game area for the online qualification events, latest news and even watch the new F1® Esports Challenger and Pro Series races. Celebrate the record-breaking F1® career of the legendary Michael Schumacher. Take to the circuit in four of his most iconic cars and receive exclusive content including Michael Schumacher-themed multiplayer car liveries, helmets, race suits, and a podium celebration emote. You can also embark on your career using a Michael Schumacher driver model. It will be the first time Mugello has hosted an Formula 1 race, having only been used by F1 teams for testing in the past. In MotoGP, however, it has proved a firm fan and rider favourite for a number of years, with fast, flowing corners and plenty of elevation changes.
If you were hoping for a physically demanding track to join the schedule this year, Mugello is it, although as there is already an Italian Grand Prix at Monza the weekend before the round at Mugello will be known as the Tuscan Grand Prix. It will also be the 1,000th F1 race entered by Ferrari, a happy coincidence given Ferrari owns the track. Amilton eventually came in for his second stop on lap 37 of 56, emerging 8.5sec behind Verstappen.
He had 20 laps in which to pass the Dutchman on his fresher set of hard tyres. The gap tumbled as Hamiton turned the timesheets purple. The Canadian GP returns while the Chinese GP remains on hiatus due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic as the Formula One 2022 schedule will make up a record-setting, 23-race calendar. The U.S. Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas already sold out and expected to be a celebrity-filled event, Domenicali said, and it will reportedly have around 360,000 fans at the track, breaking a fan attendance record. Miami is also slated to have a race in early 2022, marking a return to Florida, where a Formula 1 race hasn't been held since 1959. Absence certainly makes the heart grow fonder as anticipation for this event is nearing an all-time high.
Race officials called the event a sell out in September with over 360,000 people expected to be at COTA for the three-day race weekend. "Complete the FORMULA 1 UNITED STATES GRAND PRIX 2020 Special Event within 5 days to earn a 2020 Season Formula 1® Car and the United States Grand Prix™ Tuning Setup! "— Natalia, AgentFormula 1® United States Grand Prix™ 2020 is the ninth and final challenge of nine Grand Prix™ Special Events in Real Racing 3. It gives the players a chance to win a 2020 Season Formula 1® car of their choice. The player can participate in this event with any car, already owned or not.
Ability to take the same car into multiple Special Events is noted as the main purpose of renewed Motorsports. There is no restriction on participation in several Grand Prix simultaneously. At the Bahrain Grand Prix, Hamilton claimed his 11th win of the year, followed by Verstappen and Alexander Albon in second and third. The race was marred by a serious accident involving Haas driver Romain Grosjean, who hit a barrier at the start of the race after making contact with the AlphaTauri of Daniil Kvyat. Grosjean's car broke in two and burst into flames as it split the barrier. Pérez surrendered third place after an engine failure, putting him out of the race, whilst teammate Stroll flipped at the restart after contact with Kvyat.
