Bahrain Grand Prix third race to be scrapped over coronavirus

Bahrain GP has become the third race of the season to be called off after Australia and Vietnam.

Updated on: Mar 13, 2020, 19:05:16 IST

Paris | By Anonymous

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The Bahrain Grand Prix scheduled for March 22 was postponed by Formula One officials on Friday due to the coronavirus outbreak, becoming the third race in less than 24 hours to be called off after Australia and Vietnam.

Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel with a damaged car during the Formula One F1 Bahrain Grand Prix at Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir, Bahrain. (REUTERS)

“Formula 1 and the FIA continue to work closely with the race promoters in Bahrain and Vietnam and the local authorities to monitor the situation and take the appropriate amount of time to study the viability of potential alternative dates for each Grand Prix later in the year should the situation improve,” F1 officials said in a statement.

It is the fourth Grand Prix to be called off in total. The Chinese Grand Prix was postponed by motorsport’s governing body in February because of the spread of the coronavirus.

The death toll from COVID-19 jumped to more than 5,000 on Friday as the number of cases around the world topped 134,000, according to an AFP tally.

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