Bahrain has until May 1 to set a new date
In the face of protests and political demands that are not decreasing in intensity, F1 becomes a secondary issue in Bahrain. While Bernie Ecclestone initially wanted the new date for the Bahrain event to be set before the start of the season in Australia, the FIA World Council announced today that it is giving the Gulf Kingdom until May 1st to find a new date.
In the face of protests and political demands that are not decreasing in intensity, F1 becomes a secondary issue in Bahrain. While Bernie Ecclestone initially wanted the new date for the Bahrain event to be set before the start of the season in Australia, the FIA World Council announced today that it is giving the Gulf Kingdom until May 1st to find a new date.
The statement from the federation led by Jean Todt is thus succinct: « The World Motor Sport Council has asked the Bahrain Motor Sport Federation to inform it by May 1st at the latest whether the Bahrain Grand Prix can be held in 2011. »
The situation is, indeed, particularly precarious for the current government. Last week, the government did not hesitate to declare that it truly feared a division of the country, where a Sunni minority has governed a Shiite majority for nearly two centuries. The situation is taken seriously enough that other GCC countries (Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Kuwait) are starting to talk about a Marshall Plan aimed at the two countries with the most limited oil resources and where political tensions are most felt: Bahrain and Oman.
Under these conditions, F1 will only be able to set foot in the small, deprived Kingdom if the situation is perfectly safe for all present parties (teams, drivers, journalists, spectators), in order not to provide protesters with a worldwide media platform.
With the participation of RacingBusiness.fr
