‘Safety and well-being’ will guide F1 Middle East planning: FIA chief

MELBOURNE – Formula One governing body FIA’s chief Mohammed Ben Sulayem said “safety and well-being” will guide decision-making as the F1 calendar plunged into uncertainty following the war in the Middle East.

The season-opening Australian Grand Prix on March 8 has been hit by travel chaos but is not under threat. After Melbourne, F1 heads to China and Japan, where races are also not expected to be affected.

However, concerns are mounting over whether the April 12 Bahrain race and the Saudi Arabia race a week later will be able to go ahead.

US President Donald Trump mentioned on March 2 that the assault on Iran could go “far longer” than his initial estimates of about a month. In response, Iran and its allies have launched retaliatory strikes on Israel as well as US military bases and other areas in a host of Middle Eastern nations, including Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.

Ben Sulayem said he was closely monitoring the situation.

“At this moment of uncertainty, we hope for calm and a swift return to stability. Dialogue and the protection of civilians must remain priorities,” he said in his first statement regarding the matter late on March 2.

“We are in close contact with our member clubs, championship promoters, teams, and colleagues on the ground as we monitor developments carefully and responsibly.

“Safety and well-being will guide our decisions as we assess the forthcoming events scheduled for the World Endurance Championship and the Formula 1 World Championship.”

The Endurance Championship is a leading motor racing event due to open its season in Qatar at the end of March.

While freight, including the cars, is safely in Melbourne for the Grand Prix this weekend, the closure of airspace and airports in the Middle East has caused disruptions to travel plans for team staff.

Dubai and Doha are major flight hubs on the path to Melbourne and more than 1,000 race staff have had to scramble and change flights.

Australian Grand Prix chief Travis Auld said on March 2 he was optimistic “everyone will be here ready for the race”, adding that “we’re in a space where we’re really confident there will be no impact”.

According to The Athletic, F1 officials have chartered flights to get key team staff to Melbourne.

Approximately 1,500 paddock staff – including team crew members, race organisers and officials, as well as media and hospitality workers – typically attend such a race.

“They (flights) had to all be changed, but a lot of people around the world are on the same thing and so you’re competing obviously with that increase in demand,” said Auld.

“But they’ve been able to sort it out (and that) is the important part.”

All equipment needed to conduct the race had already been sent to Melbourne ahead of the attacks.

“All the freight is here and ready to go,” added Auld. “The drivers will be here, the engineers will be here, the team principals will be here – they’re the ones that have been prioritised.”

In other sports, tennis governing body ATP said it is monitoring the situation in the Middle East and remains in close contact with players, after airspace disruptions left a small number of competitors in the United Arab Emirates following the Dubai Tennis Championships.

Daniil Medvedev claimed the Dubai title via walkover on Feb 28 and is among the players affected by the travel delays, along with fellow Russian Andrey Rublev.

“The ATP is closely monitoring the evolving situation in the Middle East and remains in regular contact with our players, their support teams and relevant local authorities,” the body said in a statement, adding that those still in Dubai “are being accommodated in the tournament’s official hotels”.

“We are in direct communication with those affected, as well as with tournament organisers and security advisers... We will continue to provide appropriate support to ensure players and their teams can depart safely when conditions allow.”

The Indian Wells tournament begins on March 4, with seeded players receiving first-round byes and not scheduled to compete until later in the week.

Medvedev is seeded 11th while Rublev is seeded 17th for the Masters 1000 event in California.

AFP, REUTERS