The World Championship ‘shrinks’
Formula 1 has recently announced the cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix – although formally the two races in Sakhir and Jeddah are not yet definitively excluded from the calendar but ‘only’ removed from their slot in April – thus bringing the number of GPs scheduled for 2026 to 22, compared to the 24 originally planned. Furthermore, worrying rumors are emerging about the possibility that other races are in the balance and that therefore the program of this championship could undergo further shocks.
Fixed limit for teams and engine manufacturers
There is one thing, however, that will certainly not change, regardless of the number of GPs that will actually be held this year, whether they are 24, 22 or even fewer: the Budget Cap limit. In fact, the regulations specifically state that the 215 million dollars provided as a spending limit for teams applies in the event that “24 GPs or fewer“. The only variation would be if events are added – not removed – to the 24 rounds originally planned. In that case, the maximum spending cap would increase by 1.8 million dollars for each additional race. The same applies to the spending limit imposed on power unit manufacturers, which remains fixed at 130 million dollars.
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Having fewer races scheduled will therefore allow teams and engine manufacturers to be able to use their budget with greater flexibility. This – theoretically – could help the teams and engine manufacturers most in crisis to close the gap that separates them from their opponents. Abstractly imagining that all teams fully utilize their Budget Cap during a season, each team will ‘save’ on average almost a million dollars for each race that is cancelled. A compensation that could become crucial during the year in the development race.
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