Shanghai (dpa) - Due to the corona virus, the British media reports that Formula 1 will not go to China as planned in mid-April. The racing series decided against the staging of the Grand Prix in Shanghai on April 19 after a long test, the reports said.
It is still unclear whether the race planned as the fourth race of the season will be completely canceled or postponed to a later date. There is hardly any room for this in the tightly packed calendar with actually 22 races.
There are also doubts about the premiere of the Grand Prix in Vietnam. The Hanoi venue is only around 150 kilometers from the Chinese border. The World Motorsport Federation (FIA) had announced that it would evaluate the staging of the races and, "if necessary, take whatever action was necessary" to help protect the global motorsport community and the general public.
The total number of victims of the corona virus in mainland China has now reached more than 1,100. An infection has been confirmed in more than 44,000 people. Worldwide, more than 500 infections have now been confirmed outside of mainland China, 16 of them in Germany.
The last time a race was canceled in the premier motorsport class was in 2011, when the Bahrain Grand Prix was not held at the start of the season due to political unrest in the country.
racing Calendar
The Times report
BBC report
