Hamilton Wants the F1 Season to End in the Gulf, and Ferrari Waits on the Calendar

Lewis Hamilton said he hopes Formula One can still end its season at the two scheduled rounds in Qatar and Abu Dhabi, with the finale in doubt because of the war in the region, according to the Guardian. "I love going to the Middle East," the Ferrari driver said, adding that he wants to go. The Guardian reported that both races could still be cancelled.

The remark puts the championship's closing stretch back on the agenda at a moment when the title fight is being led by Kimi Antonelli. The Italian driver, who told BBC Sport this week that a 2024 crash "stayed in my head for a very long time" and that he is still finding his way in Formula One, holds the championship lead. A calendar that loses one or both Gulf rounds would fall to be redrawn by the sport's owners and the FIA, not by the teams, and no replacement venue has been named in the coverage.

For Maranello, the question is practical rather than sentimental. Ferrari's season has been built around a car developed across a long European summer and a flyaway finish; where those final points are decided shapes how the team spends the last of its development budget and how it plans its travel and freight. The Guardian's report does not say that any decision has been taken, only that the two rounds remain uncertain.