The Formula 1 calendar is set to undergo plenty of change over the next few years, with Liberty Media keen to capitalise on the sport’s growing popularity.
The Dutch Grand Prix has already confirmed that the 2026 season will see Zandvoort’s appearance in the schedule come to an end.
Spa has earned a stay of execution but its latest deal has now pointed towards how the calendar will be formed in the future.
The Belgian Grand Prix signed a contract until 2031 but will be rotated out of the calendar in 2028 and 2030 with other tracks in Europe taking up the mantle in its place.
Imola is expected to fall off the schedule after 2025 and could be a candidate to fill one of those slots, while there’s no guarantee that the Spanish Grand Prix at Barcelona will remain with a race in Madrid being introduced next season.
While F1 is looking at plenty of more exotic locations for races such as Rwanda, Thailand, South Korea and Malaysia, a European core of Grand Prix in the summer is still in the sport’s plans.
A report from Auto Motor und Sport has shared more details about F1’s enquiries into a potential return to Germany.
They believe two tracks in the country are on Formula 1’s radar but a deal doesn’t appear to be close at this stage.
F1 have enquired about returning to Hockenheim and the Nurburgring
The report from AMuS suggests that Spa’s new contract isn’t the ideal solution for the race’s organisers, who wanted to share hosting responsibilities with Zandvoort.
However, this represented ‘too great a financial risk’ for the Dutch circuit who now have just two events left to support hometown hero Max Verstappen.
Although it’s unclear how the gaps in the calendar will be filled in 2028 and 2030 when Spa is excluded from the schedule, AMuS report that F1 headquarters have enquired with organisers at Hockenheim and the Nurburgring about whether they would want to host a race again.
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The Nurburgring last hosted an F1 race in 2020 under the Eifel Grand Prix moniker, with Lewis Hamilton victorious ahead of Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo.
Hockenheim’s last appearance on the Formula 1 calendar came the year before in 2019, when Verstappen won from Sebastian Vettel, with seven drivers failing to finish the race.
AMuS admit that the F1 calendar is unlikely to shrink despite Zandvoort, Imola and Barcelona’s future being under threat.
However, there are ‘no concrete plans’ for either German track to return to Formula 1 despite the sport’s keen interest in returning to the country.
Michael Schumacher’s love for the Nurburgring
The Nurburgring is one of the most iconic circuits in motorsport, although Formula 1 stopped racing on the Nordschleife configuration in 1976 after Niki Lauda’s terrifying crash.
Instead, F1 started racing on the GP-Strecke – a purpose-built track adjacent to the historical circuit that was too narrow for Formula 1 cars to properly race on.
However, when Schumacher said goodbye to F1 at the end of 2012, he was allowed to drive at the Nurburgring in a modern Mercedes F1 car and a W196.
Talking about the experience, via ESPN, he said: “I have a lot of fond memories of the Nurburgring and am really looking forward to giving fans and friends from my home town of Kerpen, which is quite close to the Nurburgring, something to remember as they see me drive by.
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“But it will be a fantastic experience for me too, driving along the Nordschleife in a state-of-the-art Formula One Silver Arrow, particularly in view of the fact that the Silver Arrow’s legend began here.
“Posting a lap in a modern Silver Arrow on the most beautiful and most testing circuit in the world, what a brilliant mix – it’s every motor racing driver’s dream!”
Plenty of racing purists would love to see F1 return to the Nurburgring, but it doesn’t appear to be on the cards right now.
