F1 fans barred from Bahrain, Ferrari HQ on lockdown due to coronavirus

Formula 1 will head to Bahrain later this month, but only those participating in the weekend will be present with fans effectively banned from the venue.

Bahrain officials have made an unprecedented decision to run the grand prix behind closed doors due to the coronavirus outbreak.

‘Participants-only’ Bahrain Grand Prix

Round two of the F1 World Championship will make history as the first-ever grand prix to take place without a single spectator watching on.

As the coronavirus continues to cause havoc around the globe, leading to many sporting events being cancelled, Bahrain has decided to press on with its race but with limitations.

Those relate to spectators.

If you have booked a flight to Bahrain, it is time to cancel as you won’t be allowed into the Bahrain International Circuit with the organisers making it a “participants-only” event.

A statement read: “In consultation with our international partners and the Kingdom’s national health Taskforce, Bahrain has made the decision to hold this year’s Bahrain Grand Prix as a participants-only event.

“As an F1 host nation, balancing the welfare of supporters and race goers is a tremendous responsibility.

“Given the continued spread of Covid-19 globally, convening a major sporting event, which is open to the public and allows thousands of international travellers and local fans to interact in close proximity would not be the right thing to do at the present time.

“But to ensure that neither the sport, nor its global supporter base, is unduly impacted, the race weekend itself will still go ahead as a televised event.”

Bahrain officials praised the country’s response to the outbreak, saying this decision – billed as an “aggressive social distancing measures” – is yet another step towards continuing the virus.

“Bahrain’s own early actions to prevent, identify and isolate cases of individuals with Covid-19 has been extremely successful to date,” the statement added.

“The approach has involved rapid, proactive measures, identifying those affected by the virus, of which the overwhelming majority of cases relate to those travelling into the country by air.

“Aggressive social distancing measures have further increased the effectiveness of preventing the virus’ spread, something that would clearly be near impossible to maintain were the race to have proceeded as originally planned.

“We know how disappointed many will be by this news, especially for those planning to travel to the event, which has become a cornerstone event of the international F1 calendar, but safety has to remain our utmost priority.”

Ferrari’s season in turmoil due to Italian lockdown

Over the weekend Italy announced draconian measures as it tries to contain the outbreak, which include locking down the north of the country.

Ferrari is based in Modena in the north.

Italian authorities announced a number of restrictions on those living in the north, preventing people from traveling in and out.

This affects Ferrari as employees who have yet to leave headquarters could be banned from traveling to Australia for this weekend’s season-opening grand prix.

Added to that Ferrari personnel may not be able to return to base between Australia and Bahrain.

Luckily for Ferrari, the important people are already in Australia or halfway there.

As such the Italian team doesn’t expect any issues for Melbourne, but after that it is anyone’s guess how it will play out.

A statement given to Autosport said: “Following measures announced by the Italian Government last night, we are monitoring and evaluating the situation and are in close contact with the relevant authorities and all organisations involved.

“For Ferrari, compliance with the Government regulations represents the primary guarantee for ensuring the safety of its employees and their families which is our priority. Every single decision will be made with respect to this principle.

“Part of the team and equipment have already arrived in Melbourne and the departures for the remaining members of the team are going ahead as programmed unless we receive communications to the contrary.”

AlphaTauri, F1’s other Italian team, has avoided the lockdown as its Faezna base is not in a red zone.