Decision on Covid-threatened Australian Grand Prix shortly

Website autosport.com said the Melbourne-based race, which is due to kick off the new season on March 21, would likely be pushed back to later in the yea

Melbourne: A final call on staging the Australian Grand Prix will be made in the “coming weeks”, organisers said Tuesday following reports it could be postponed over strict travel restrictions and the emergence of a new strain of Covid-19.

Website autosport.com said the Melbourne-based race, which is due to kick off the new season on March 21, would likely be pushed back to later in the year, with Bahrain poised to open the 2021 calendar on March 28.

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It pointed to Australia’s tough coronavirus restrictions, which require international travellers to quarantine for two weeks, as posing significant logistical and financial obstacles.

Many of Formula One’s teams are also based in England where cases are surging, spurred by a more infectious new variant, further complicating matters. Australian organisers said they were working through the issues.

“The Australian Grand Prix Corporation continues to work closely with the Victorian (state) government and Formula 1 on conditions and arrangements relating to the staging of the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne in 2021,” they said in a brief statement.

“Further detail will be provided upon finalisation of arrangements with all parties in the coming weeks.”