BEVERLY HILLS, January 29, (THEWILL) – The calendar for the 2021 Formula 1 season and the start times for each of the confirmed races for the year have been revealed. The season Grands Prix, once again, will start on the hour instead of ten minutes past, as was the case in the previous season.
The 2021 season will officially kick- off in Bahrain on Friday March 26 with the opening free practice session beginning at 14: 30 local time. The traditional 90 minutes of FP1 and FP2 have, from this season onwards, been reduced to 60 minutes each, which is the same as Saturday’s FP3 session.
This one-hour cut of practice time will force the teams to cram in more on-track action to get their cars in the set-up sweet spot for qualifying and for the races as well.
The full list of race start times can be seen below.
RACE START TIMES – 2021
GRAND PRIX DATE Local Time UTC
Bahrain March 28 1800 1500
Italy – Imola April 18 1500 1300
TBC May 2 TBC TBC
Spain May 9 1500 1300
Monaco May 23 1500 1300
Azerbaijan June 6 1600 1200
Canada June 13 1400 1800
France June 27 1500 1300
Austria July 4 1500 1300
Great Britain July 18 1500 1400
Hungary August 1 1500 1300
Belgium August 29 1500 1300
Netherlands September 5 1500 1300
Italy – Monza September 12 1500 1300
Russia September 26 1500 1200
Singapore October 3 2000 1200
Japan October 10 1400 0500
United States October 24 1400 1900
Mexico October 31 1300 1900
Brazil November 7 1400 1700
Australia November 21 1700 0600
Saudi Arabia December 5 1900 1600
Abu Dhabi December 12 1700 1300
The contract issue between record racer Sir Lewis Hamilton and leading racing team Mercedes still hangs in a balance as the Brit remains out of contract but with no other free driver’s seat on the circuit for the next season. However, there appears to be positive vibes from Mercedes camp ahead of the preseason, that something will be worked out before the Bahrain GP in March.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
