Bigger Headache Than F1 Cost Cap Revealed Amid 2026 Race Cancellations

The potential race cancellation and shuffle of F1 races in 2026 is not a Cost Cap issue as per James Vowles, but more how they will fit the rookie FP1 sessions.

To give youngsters more track time, the FIA came up with the idea of presenting two FP1 sessions throughout the season for a car each – meaning every team had to give two FP1 sessions, one each. They upped the figure to four sessions across the seasons.

This meant that each driver had to give up two FP1 sessions. In a normal 24-race calendar, it was easier to divide but with six sprint events coupled with growing number of street races, it made it difficult for F1 teams to allot those sessions to rookie drivers.

As such, the F1 teams kept aside certain races where they allotted the sessions like Barcelona, Red Bull Ring, Hungary, Mexico, Austin, Bahrain, Abu Dhabi, etc. With the cancellation of the Middle Eastern races this year and chance of the calendar being cut short, it has created a separate headache.

Even with Bahrain taking place in Malaysia, the teams cannot allot sessions on a track which will be new for everyone on the grid in current era. With potential cancellations of Qatar and Abu Dhabi to come, Williams F1 team principal has highlighted the rookie session as a larger issue than Cost Cap.

There is a chance that Imola ends up replacing one of the two races, which will create a separate headache. “It’s not a cost-cap issue per se,” said Vowles in press conference. “I think net it’s probably zero, or maybe even help you depending on where you are in attrition.

“Young drivers is a bit of an issue. A lot of people have planned to do their young driver day in Abu Dhabi, and should that not exist, we’re going to have to make some plan changes as a result of it. I think if it were to be Imola — and to be clear, that isn’t confirmed or otherwise — the weather will be interesting and spicy, but it would still be nice to go back to a European race at the end of it.

“I know F1 are working incredibly hard for that not to happen and for the calendar to continue as is, but as you would imagine, it’s more than those in this room right now that can determine that,” summed up Vowles, who found support from Racing Bulls’ commercial head Peter Bayer.

He feels the loss of those races will affect their Profit & Loss statement rather than Cost Cap, in addition to the rookie session dilemma. “I mean, we’re not, again, same thing, we’re not in a rush to take a decision,” said Bayer. “Stefano (Domenicali) and the team do everything they can.

“I guess the only thing I could add to what James said is that eventually, if we would lose those two races, that would certainly have not an impact on the cost cap, but on the P&L, and that’s something that we would hopefully want to avoid. As much as I love racing in my backyard, I definitely prefer to go to Qatar and Abu Dhabi,” summed up Bayer.