© Oracle Red Bull RacingThe 2026 F1 Calendar Is HereThis is the season where everything shifts. The calendar's global, the tech's evolving, and the fight for the front gets fiercer than ever. Let’s break it down.
Atlonglast,it’shere.Afterweeksofspeculationaboutwhatwouldstay,whatwouldgoandwhatnewdestinationraceswouldarrive,the2026Formula1calendarishere.Anditlookslikebeinganabsolutebanger!Let’stakealook…
A bit like English people endless chattering about the weather, in Formula 1, in about late April, thoughts inevitably turn to the following year’s calendar. Where are we starting? Fewer triple-headers or, heaven forbid, more? Spring three-week gap to extended summer break. Spanish double? Italian single?
All of the questions, and a whole lot more, have now been answered, with the release of the hugely anticipated 2026 calendar that features another classic start in Melbourne, an all- new semi-permanent circuit in Madrid and a full nine months of raw, roaring, relentless F1 action. Sounds perfect. Sounds perfect. Here’s where we’re racing, the major developments, and why it matters for Oracle Red Bull Racing.
Ahead of 2025, Melbourne had hosted the F1 season opener in 22 of the 27 times it has appeared on the calendar and had become a favourite launch pad for teams and a perennially popular opener with fans who thronged to Albert Park in their hundreds of thousands.
In recent years, it lost its starting status to Bahrain but this season (and in no way a slight on Sakhir, which we genuinely love for its superb paddock) there was much rejoicing when Melbourne regained the slot. And the good news is that it’s held on to P1 for 2026.
It means we’ll kick off from March 6–8 with a full suite of calamitous sponsor activations involving shrimps, barbies, too tight Aussie rules shirts and probably some badly managed surfing. Add all that to the arrival of F1’s new cars – and the debut of the RB22 and the first Red Bull Powertrains power unit – and it’s all set to be a thrilling start to a potentially game-changing season. Aw yeah!
A week later, the caravan will pitch its tents in Shanghai and two weeks later we’re in Suzuka for a standalone Sakura-season race followed by a double-header in Bahrain and high-speed Jeddah.
We’re then heading west from MK for a brace of North American races. Miami retains its early May slot, but Montréal moves three weeks earlier than its usual date and that could throw up even more weather-related chaos than we usually get in Quebec.
Monaco kicks off what is becoming an ever-more compressed European season, with the next race in Barcelona (the last of its current contract) being followed by Austria, Great Britain, Hungary and a much-needed three-week summer break.
We’re back in action on August 21-23 at the final Dutch Grand Prix in Zandvoort and that’s followed by the Italian GP at Monza and then, the season’s only new event – the Spanish Grand Prix in Madrid from 11-13 September.
With its hybrid street-permanent layout and zero historical data, the track around the IFEMA Madrid exhibition centre in the Barajas district (just a stone’s throw away from the Adolfo Suarez airport) and a sizable 16 kilometres from the city centre, will be a real blank canvas. That’s a challenge we love and a major opportunity to shine. Bring it on.
The epic 24-race campaign rolls on to a double-header of street races, in Baku and Singapore, and a rollercoaster end and potentially thrilling pair of triple-headers taking in Austin, Mexico City and São Paulo, and Las Vegas, Qatar and the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on December 6, exactly 276 days after fire-up for FP1 in Melbourne. Phew!
- New race: Madrid GP – For the first time, F1 makes its debut in Madrid from September 11–13. The Madring circuit, blending street and permanent sections, becomes the sport’s 80th distinct venue and is set to be a 5.474km, 20-turn layout, and with estimated qualifying lap time of around 1 minute 32 seconds. Interestingly, there’s an elevated motorway splitting the tracks two ends, meaning that the layout will feature two short tunnel sections to go from the Recinto Ferial complex to the Valdebebas expansion area and vice versa.
- Calendar shuffle - Canada moves up the calendar, as Montreal now follows Miami (May 22–24), creating a smoother North American swing before Europe. F1 can’t avoid the Indy 500, however. The race at the Brickyard usually coincides with the aftermath of the Monaco Grand Prix but with Canada moving into that slot, the 500 will now go up against the race at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.
- Arrivederci Imola – Sad to say it but the Emilia Romagna GP at awesome Imola drops off the schedule. With four wins for Max from the five editions held since its 2020 return it’s safe to say we’ll miss Imola – though maybe not its truly terrible traffic. With Zandvoort exiting after 2026, Barcelona’s future in doubt beyond next year, and with Spa set for rotation. the calendar might get a couple of coveted slots for 2027. Hello, Thailand? How are you doing, Qiddiya? Buenos dias Buenos Aires?
- Double triple – The beast is back again! The ‘flyaway’ run-in of recent years is always punishing and replete with upsets and oddities and 2026 should be no exception as the double dose of triple-headers returns. It’s a gruelling six-week min-marathon covering a slew of time zones and with just one week at home in between. Expect finger trouble from mechanics, grumpy drivers and mucho mayhem. Should be fun!
WhyItMattersforOracleRedBullRacing
- Fresh circuits mean fresh opportunities. No one has history in Madrid. No telemetry. No reference points. That levels the field — and puts the emphasis on adaptability, fast learning, and bold engineering. Don’t want to boast or anything, but historically we’ve not been too shabby in any of those departments. Just sayin’.
- Logistics matter — a lot. The F1 calendar is always a delicate balancing act for the promoter and for the FIA. As fans we tend to look at the dates and either heave a sigh of relief at a change or vent a howl of despair as a race slips out of holiday time. But with a football World Cup happening next summer (though Canada is only hosting games in Toronto and Vancouver) and an array of other major events, holidays, festivals and occasions to plan around, slotting in 24 races is increasingly complex. There’s also the small problem of trying to zone races (Miami and Canada are grouped next year) and make sure that six or seven sets of sea-borne garage sets are in the right port at the right time and the whole thing is a massive headache. The bottom line is that when it comes to efficiently moving equipment, cars and people around the globe and maximising performance, 2026 looks pretty good all things considered.
- End-of-season intensity suits us. We’re no strangers to pressure. Triple-headers demand efficiency, consistency, and the ability to turn the screw — traits that have powered our strongest title runs.
- The thrill of the new – It’s not just the dates that get shuffled in 2026, there could be a massive shift in the pecking order. Next year sees the biggest regs change, well, almost ever. The chassis and the power units change. Smaller, supposedly more nimble cars, movable aero, changed 1.6 lite hybrid power units with massively boosted battery power. For the first ever, we’re doing it all. It really is going to be a thrilling voyage into the unknown.
Mar 6–8AustraliaMelbourne
Apr 17–19Saudi ArabiaJeddah
Jun 5–7Monaco Monte Carlo
Jun 26–28Austria Spielberg
Jul 3–5Britain Silverstone
Jul 24–26Hungary Budapest
Aug 21–23Netherlands Zandvoort
Sep 11–13Spain Madrid - NEW
Oct 9–11Singapore Marina Bay
Oct 30–Nov 1Mexico Mexico City
Dec 4–6Abu DhabiYas Marina
Every corner, every continent — we’re all in for 2026. Follow Oracle Red Bull Racing as we take on the world, one Grand Prix at a time.
