The grid before the start of the race. Russian Grand Prix, Sunday 27th September 2020. Sochi Autodrom, Sochi, Russia.
Formula 1 has terminated its contract with organisers of the Russian Grand Prix.
Last week Formula 1 confirmed it was not possible to compete in the country following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and cancelled the 2022 round.
That was duly ratified by the FIA on Tuesday on the grounds of force majeure.
On Thursday Formula 1 moved a step further and terminated the contract in its entirety.
Formula 1 had been due to move the Russian Grand Prix to Igora Drive, near St. Petersburg, from 2023 but this will no longer happen.
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin has been an influential figure in the existence of the grand prix.
He has attended the event on several occasions and has handed out the trophies on the podium, most recently in 2018.
The FIA on Tuesday condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, outlining its steps, but stopped short of banning competitors from Russia and complicit neighbour Belarus.
Drivers from those two countries can continue to compete under the FIA’s own flag, though several national bodies – including the UK – have already made a different decision and have banned entrants from the two countries.
The future of Russia’s Nikita Mazepin, funded by his father’s Uralkali firm, remains unclear.
Keyword: Formula 1 terminates Russian Grand Prix contract