Formula 1 has told Imola it will not be required to hold a season-ending race, meaning the plan to finish 2026 in Qatar and Abh Dhabi is now set in stone barring unforeseen circumstances.
F1 had created a backup plan to finish the season in Italy on Dec. 6 in case hostilities resumed in the Middle East after the U.S. midterms.
The Italian circuit had started building grandstands but needed to know whether to commit to full-scale preparations.
On Tuesday, the deadline reported by ESPN last week, F1 has now let Imola know it will not be required.
It means as things stand, F1's season finishes with a triple header of races in Las Vegas on Nov. 21, Qatar on Nov. 29 and Abu Dhabi on Dec. 6.
Formula 1 has repeatedly stressed that it has been in constant communication with governments in Qatar and Abu Dhabi, while also monitoring travel advice from relevant European countries where the sport's 11 teams are based.
F1 was emboldened by the fact that MotoGP, also owned by Liberty Media, last weekend raced without issue in the Qatar circuit hosting F1 at the end of this month.
MotoGP team Yamaha pulled out of that event due to the company's global travel policy.
No F1 team has similar restrictions about travelling to the region.
The Imola news means F1 is full-speed ahead with its original schedule plan.
Sources have told ESPN that the final two races can still be scrapped if there were renewed hostilities in the Middle East.
Sources have confirmed in that instance, without Imola, that would mean the season ending with the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
- McLaren's Piastri splits from ex-F1 driver Webber's management team
- Mercedes new era of dominance? Wolff warns of fight to retain constructors'
- Verstappen's P21 to P2: Red Bull a 'disaster to drive' in São Paulo
From a sporting context, both championships are settled -- Kimi Antonelli won the drivers' championship in Mexico, while Mercedes wrapped up the constructors' in Brazil. However, the constructors' championship is how teams are allocated their prize money and plenty of other teams are fighting for positions lower down.
Sources have told ESPN that F1's commercial agreement with the teams states there must be 22 races minimum in a calendar year, although their commercial agreements with broadcasters will be satisfied at the conclusion Las Vegas' event.
The U.S. and Israeli war in Iran earlier in the year forced F1 to cancel April races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, although Bahrain paid to reschedule with an event at Malaysian circuit in October.
Despite the rescheduled Bahrain race, were the final two races to be cancelled, F1 would be left with 21 races for the season.
