The 2021 Formula One Grand Prix Season Has Been Announced

With the 2021 Formula One Grand Prix Season calendar finally announced, we can start to get really excited for the season ahead. After an unprecedented year due to the pandemic, don’t worry if you’re a little out of the loop on what to look for in the 2021 F1 season.

Fortunately, we’ve got the lowdown. Read on to find out more!

2021 Formula One Grand Prix Season Calendar

As we mentioned it above, that’s where we’ll start. The 2021 Formula One schedule was revealed, then updated this month.

There are 23 provisional Grand Prix events on the schedule for this year. The season now starts in Bahrain in mid-march, as Australia has changed to later in the year. 

Other notable inclusions are the return of Imola, as the scheduled date is no longer feasible in China, as well as the first-ever world championship race in Saudi Arabia and a new race in the Netherlands.

Notable exclusions is the Vietnamese Grand Prix in Hanoi. Though this was set for 2020, it seems it will not be going ahead in 2021 either.

2021 Formula One Teams

There are no new teams coming in 2021, but there are a couple of name changes.

Racing Point, previously Force India, will become Aston Martin. This is thanks to the buyout by Lawrence stroll back in 2018. 

Meanwhile, Renault is rebranding their F1 team to Alpine. This is to reflect its high-end performance car brand. 

Renault will also be the only team left using the French power units, as McLaren is switching to Mercedes power.

Red Bull and AlphaTaura enter their final year with Honda this season and are yet to confirm their power unit supplier for the following season. So, Renault may end up supplying the engines for these teams if there’s no deal by mid-season. 

2021 Formula One Drivers

While there are no new teams, there’s plenty of changes on the grid in terms of drivers. They’re as follows:

• Sergio Perez has joined Red Bull
• Sebastian Vettel has joined Aston Martin
• Carlos Sainz has joined Ferrari
• Daniel Ricciardo has joined McLaren
• Fernando Alonso has joined Alpine
• Yuki Tsunoda has joined AlphaTauri

Mercedes has confirmed Valtteri Bottas as one of their drivers for the year. They haven’t yet finalised terms for Lewis Hamilton to stay with them, though it is expected soon.

Haas announced an exciting all-new line-up, featuring a return of a Schumacher to the track, the team will now comprise of Nikita Mazepin and Mick Schumacher, son of Michael Schumacher.  

2021 Formula One Rules

Prior to the pandemic, significant technical changes for the new-look cars were planned for 2021. This has now been postponed to 2022, partially as a cost-saving measure.

Teams have been told only limited changes are allowed to their cars for the upcoming season. They have a limited number of tokens they’re able to use to alter their cars. So, in the case of McLaren, most of these will be utilised to make the necessary changes for their new power unit. 

Additionally, Mercedes’ controversial Dual-Axis steering system has been banned for the 2021 season. 

There have been some new aerodynamic restrictions imposed, such as a reduction in the size of the floor ahead of the rear wheels. This is to curb potential increases in downforce. 

Spending limits have come in. A cost cap of $145 million is in effect, though this cap excludes marketing costs and driver salaries. 

Last of all, Friday practice sessions are now 60 minutes instead of 90 minutes. In the same vein, there’s also now just three days of testing scheduled for the new season, as opposed to six last year. 

See It For Yourself

With so many exciting changes ahead for the 2021 Formula One Grand Prix Season, we’d bet you want to go see the action live, especially as so many of us watched the 2020 season stuck in our houses through various lockdowns.

We can help you get the best tickets to the see best races, including hospitality and hotels. Just get in touch with us to book now.