Formula 2 will expand its Baku meeting, adding a second feature race for a double‑race weekend.
Expanded Baku format
As the Azerbaijan Formula 1 Grand Prix approaches, F2 officials announced a supersized meeting less than two weeks before the race event.
The new schedule will feature one free practice, two qualifying sessions, a sprint race and two feature races—a unique package that does not usually fit within a single F1 support weekend.
CEO Bruno Michel said the addition is “the only weekend where the timetable allows the extra sessions, increasing the level of entertainment for the crowd and fans.”
Michel added that the Baku City Circuit “provides amazing racing,” and the organisers are pleased to make the twelfth round of the season especially distinctive.
Implications for the season finale
The final two rounds in Qatar and Abu Dhabi are still scheduled to retain the standard format of one free practice, one qualifying, a sprint and a feature race.
However, the end of the Formula 1 calendar remains uncertain as political tensions could force cancellations or revisions of the Middle‑Eastern events.
FIA and F1 are expected to resolve the rest of the 2026 schedule before month‑end, with a relocated Bahrain Grand Prix already added for early October at Sepang, Malaysia.
One option under discussion is cancelling the Qatar and Abu Dhabi rounds and moving the season finale to Imola in late November.
Future calendar uncertainties
With the F2 championship’s need to preserve championship points, the extra sessions in Baku may serve as a buffer against losses if later events are disrupted.
The timing of the announcement, just a week before the Azerbaijan GP, suggests the organisers are preparing for any scenario that could arise from F1’s final‑week decisions.
Stakeholders in the racing community will closely monitor official communications as the FIA and F1 finalize the remaining calendar, which shapes the trajectory of the 2026 season.
"