The Azerbaijan Grand Prix is canceled, the start of the season is postponed
The series of cancellations and postponements of Grand Prix events continues due to the Coronavirus epidemic. The organizers of the Baku GP in Azerbaijan have expressed the wish to cancel the race given the health risks and the lack of profitability if the event is maintained.
Scheduled for Sunday, June 7, 2020, the Azerbaijan Grand Prix was supposed to mark the start of the 2020 season. F1 fans will have to be patient as this race, like the Monaco GP, will be canceled and not postponed.
Azerbaijani authorities have contacted Liberty Media to inform them of their intention to cancel the Baku Grand Prix. The organizers believe it is risky to invest in the logistics related to the circuit. Being an urban circuit, preparing the track requires a significant financial investment and major logistical efforts to prepare the city center to host the single-seaters. This preparation could be in vain given the lack of visibility on the global evolution of the epidemic and the high probability of the race being canceled at the last minute, as was the case in Melbourne.
The organizers also concluded that preparing for the Grand Prix would result in significant losses for the city of Baku, especially since the ticket sales revenue will be considerably lower than in previous editions.
Covid-19 continues to challenge the governing bodies of F1, and the start of the season is not expected to take place before June 14 at the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve for the Canadian Grand Prix.
