F1 Stands Down Imola and Confirms Qatar and Abu Dhabi Will Close the 2026 Season

F1 ends months of doubt over its season finale

Formula 1 has finally settled the biggest off-track question of its 2026 season. On Tuesday, 10 November, the championship informed the Imola circuit that it will not be needed as a back-up venue, confirming that the season will end as originally planned with the Qatar Grand Prix at Lusail on 27–29 November and the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at Yas Marina on 4–6 December. The decision closes a contingency plan that had hung over the final weeks of the championship for months, and it means the 2026 calendar will run to 23 rounds, one short of the original schedule.

The call brings long-awaited certainty for teams planning travel and freight weeks in advance, but it carries a clear caveat: Formula 1 will keep monitoring the situation and remains prepared to cancel either race if conditions deteriorate.

The call Imola had been waiting for

Imola had been on standby to host the season finale on the first weekend of December if either Middle East round became unsafe. The Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari had even begun preparations, building grandstands for a race that will now never happen. But 10 November was the deadline for a final answer, and the answer was no.

Imola was an emotional choice as much as a practical one. The circuit, 40 kilometres east of Bologna, is a home venue for Ferrari and for 20-year-old Kimi Antonelli, the Italian who sealed the drivers' championship in Mexico this month to become the youngest world champion in the sport's history. A finale there would have been a homecoming; instead, the championship heads east as planned.

A season reshaped by war

The uncertainty follows a conflict that has already rewritten the 2026 calendar. The war in the Middle East, which began in late February when the United States and Israel launched strikes on Iran, forced the cancellation of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, while the Bahrain Grand Prix was postponed and eventually held in Malaysia in October. Against that background, the final two rounds were never guaranteed, and Formula 1 spent months working on a fallback.

There were signs this week that the immediate pressure may be easing: United States President Donald Trump said on Monday he planned to hold off on new military strikes against Iran, after appeals from countries in the region including Qatar's prime minister. Travel insurance and government travel advice currently allow the races to go ahead, according to Autosport.

MotoGP's weekend offered a preview

Formula 1 did not decide blind. Last weekend MotoGP raced its Qatar Grand Prix at the same Lusail circuit without major incident, though without Yamaha, which withdrew both teams over safety concerns. Marco Bezzecchi won the race for Aprilia.

The weekend offered both reassurance and a warning: the event passed without incident, but the absence of a full factory team showed how finely balanced the judgement is. FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem wrote on Instagram: "We are ready for Qatar and Abu Dhabi. We are fully prepared and committed to delivering two outstanding Grand Prix weekends and a spectacular conclusion to the FIA Formula One world championship."

The teams back the decision

According to Reuters, all 11 teams were informed of the decision and were supportive. That unity matters: the teams had been the most exposed, with freight and personnel needing to be routed to whichever continent hosted the finale.

Team principals had already signalled their trust in the championship's judgement. Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur said in Mexico: "I trust them to take the best decision for all of us. Me, personally, I want to race. It doesn't matter where, but I want to race. Now, I will go where they will tell us to go." Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff added at Interlagos that Formula 1 follows international guidelines, travel restrictions and the feedback of local governments, saying: "This is what you need to rely on, in my opinion, and I'm fully with that."

Not every voice was unqualified: Aston Martin had sought security guarantees before committing to travel, with acting team principal Mike Krack saying the team hoped Formula 1 would not take unnecessary risks. Formula 1 president Stefano Domenicali has maintained that the championship will finish at its scheduled venues unless the security situation worsens.

What is still to be decided

With both Formula 1 world championships already settled — Antonelli the drivers' crown in Mexico, Mercedes the constructors' title in Brazil last Sunday — the final rounds will not decide a title fight. But there is still plenty at stake further down the bill.

The Formula 2 championship will be decided on track in Qatar and Abu Dhabi. Brazilian Rafael Camara, who made his Formula 1 debut with Haas at Interlagos last weekend, leads Red Bull-backed Bulgarian Nikola Tsolov by seven points. For Camara, the two Middle East rounds are the biggest races of his young career.

The run-in starts in Las Vegas

Before the Middle East double-header, the championship resumes in Las Vegas on 19–21 November, the race itself on Saturday evening local time. The night race on the Strip, with its long straights and cold evening temperatures, is a stern test of its own. Then comes the flight east: Lusail under lights on 29 November, and Yas Marina a week later on 6 December.

For months, the end of this season was a question mark. Now it has an answer, even if that answer comes with conditions attached: Formula 1 will finish 2026 in Qatar and Abu Dhabi, Imola stands down, and the focus can return to the racing.