F1 organizers are reportedly considering a return to the Portimao circuit, to replace the now cancelled Russian GP in the 2022 calendar.
Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine last week, F1 made the decision to not go ahead with the Russian GP this year. This leaves the door open for several other circuits to replace the Sochi Autodrom on the calendar.
Initially, it was widely rumored that the Turkish GP would make a return this year. The Istanbul Park Circuit hosted F1 races in both 2020 and 2021. However, both these years the circuit was added as an emergency replacement to other tracks where races had been cancelled due to the Covid 19 pandemic.
There was error on the F1 website last week, that saw ‘Turkish GP 2022’ tickets going live. They later confirmed that it was an error and that there was no decision made regarding the same.
According to recent reports, Portugal could be making a return to the calendar in 2022. The Algarve International Circuit in Portimao too, hosted two GPs in 2020 and 2021 respectively. These races too were held due to reasons similar to that of the Turkish GP.
Formula 1 haven’t made any announcement regarding Sochi’s replacement as of yet.
Also read: Former F1 driver Anthony Davidson explains why the 2022 season is in for a big shake-up in the field
What other races could we see replacing the Russian GP in the 2022 F1 calendar?
There are several tracks that the organizers could choose as a replacement to Sochi. In particular, there are some circuits which fans have been wanting back for years now.
One of those includes Sepang in Malaysia. F1 last raced there in 2017, and it’s widely considered to be a track that produces great racing action.
Moving elsewhere in Asia, F1 could consider racing in China. The Shanghai International Circuit hasn’t hosted a race in over three years due to the pandemic, but the organizers recently signed a contract that would see them return in 2023, and keep F1 in China until at-least 2025.
F1 could pull the switch early and decide to move to China a year earlier than they’d originally planned. However, it’s seen as un unlikely option. Another likely replacement would be racing in Germany with the country having two tracks that have hosted F1 races as recently as 2020.
The last option F1 would look into would be scrapping the race altogether. The 2022 season is scheduled to host 23 races, making it the biggest of all time. However, if they don’t come across a suitable replacement on time, they may be forced to go ahead with just 22.
