{"id":37310,"date":"2025-09-03T12:38:57","date_gmt":"2025-09-03T16:38:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/?p=37310"},"modified":"2025-09-03T12:41:30","modified_gmt":"2025-09-03T16:41:30","slug":"f1-hockenheim-portimao-istanbul-in-talks-for-calendar-slots","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2025\/09\/03\/f1-hockenheim-portimao-istanbul-in-talks-for-calendar-slots\/","title":{"rendered":"F1: Hockenheim, Portimao, Istanbul in talks for calendar slots"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last weekend’s Dutch GP<\/a> marked the penultimate F1 race at Zandvoort, with organisers unable to secure a calendar extension beyond 2026.<\/p>\n

Zandvoort is one of many venues that struggle to compete in such a competitive market to host Grand Prix.<\/p>\n

Financial firepower, strong logistics and modern infrastructure are all necessary requirements to be part of the calendar.<\/p>\n

Despite this high standards, numerous circuits – both old and new ones – are in negotiations with Formula 1 to become Grand Prix hosts.<\/p>\n

Among those currently in negotiations are some of the most popular tracks in recent memory.<\/p>\n

\"\"
2019 German Grand Prix, Sunday – LAT Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

F1 considering calendar changes, rotational circuits<\/h2>\n

LWOS has previously reported on numerous venues and their efforts to secure a place in Formula 1.<\/p>\n

Turkey’s Istanbul Park has been mentioned in a few occasions this year, with organisers working hard to reach an agreement.<\/p>\n

Stefano Domenicali<\/a>, F1’s CEO, has spoken positively about the Turkish GP.<\/p>\n

A return to Istanbul Park is therefore a real possibility, especially after 2026 – when a few circuits will be on expiring contracts.<\/p>\n

One of those circuits is Barcelona, whish is fighting for dear life to stay in Formula 1.<\/p>\n

The announcement of a new Grand Prix in Madrid for 2026 (on a 10-year contract) spelt trouble for the Catalunya circuit.<\/p>\n

On paper, the chances of two races in Spain are relatively slim.<\/p>\n

Nevertheless, organisers and key stakeholders are still in talks with F1 to secure a new contract.<\/p>\n

In a recent interview, Stefano Domenicali mentioned both these circuits – alongside two others – as being in negotiations for F1 contracts:<\/p>\n

“Barcelona is also interested in an alternate slot,” <\/em>he told it.motorsport.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

“Then there’s Portugal, Turkey, and recently even Hockenheim, which has new ownership and has shown signs of interest.<\/em><\/p>\n

“The most important thing for anyone interested in hosting a Grand Prix to understand, is that there are limited spaces available.<\/em><\/p>\n

“So anyone who sits at the table must have a certain financial strength.<\/em><\/p>\n

“Today, the situation is different than a few years ago, not only in terms of what’s needed to acquire the event but also in terms of what needs to be invested.<\/em><\/p>\n

“Let’s not forget that we’re pushing hard on sustainability; all promoters will have to be ready to comply with 2030 carbon-neutral standards.”<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"
Max Verstappen in Istanbul, Turkey. (Photo by Dan Mullan\/Getty Images) \/\/ Getty Images \/ Red Bull Content Pool<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

How the schedule could evolve in 2026 and beyond<\/h4>\n

Something Domenicali mentioned which could become of growing importance moving forward is the idea of alternate slots.<\/p>\n

In essence, F1 is likely to have some circuits on the calendar on a biennial basis.<\/p>\n

The Belgian GP<\/a>, for example, recently signed a new multi-year agreement with Formula 1.<\/p>\n

However, after 2027, Spa will only feature on the calendar in 2029 and 2031 – therefore being absent in 2028 and 2030.<\/p>\n

This model is likely something F1 will pursue further, with circuits that lack the necessary criteria for a permanent slot, but that still want a place on the calendar.<\/p>\n

Barcelona<\/a> might have to settle for a semi-permanent place, given that the Spanish Capital will host Grand Prix for many years.<\/p>\n

Some of the other circuits mentioned, like Istanbul Park<\/a>, Hockenheim and Portimao<\/a>, would all be welcome full-time races.<\/p>\n

Alongside Zandvoort, COTA, Barcelona and Baku’s contracts all expire in 2026.<\/p>\n

Imola’s deal ended this year, creating some room for manoeuvre on the 2027 schedule.<\/p>\n

The question is how many of these bidding circuits, from Hockenheim to Istanbul, will put pen to paper with FOM (Formula One Management).<\/p>\n

There has certainly been more noise from Istanbul and Portimao in recent months, with the the Portuguese government even announcing Portimao’s progress towards a place on the 2027 calendar.<\/p>\n

Regardless, the results of these talks should become clearer over the next twelve months.<\/p>\n

Main photo: Wolfgang Wilhelm (via Mercedes media gallery)<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Last weekend’s Dutch GP marked the penultimate F1 race at Zandvoort, with organisers unable to secure a calendar extension beyond 2026. Zandvoort is one of many venues that struggle to compete in such a competitive market to host Grand Prix. Financial firepower, strong logistics and modern infrastructure are all necessary requirements to be part of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4927,"featured_media":37304,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,3],"tags":[2452,2539,1847],"class_list":["post-37310","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-formula-1","category-news","tag-f1-2025-season","tag-f1-calendar","tag-stefano-domenicali"],"modified_by":"Jaden Diaz-Ndisang","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37310","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4927"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37310"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37310\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":37313,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37310\/revisions\/37313"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37304"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37310"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37310"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37310"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}