A major Formula One race is set to be axed from the Grand Prix calendar in what may come as a blow to current world champion Max Verstappen, according to reports.
The over-stuffed calendar swelled to its biggest-ever offering this season, with a staggering 24 races set across five continents.
Such is the toll that constant globe-trotting takes on the Formula One ecosystem that – as Mail Sport reported last week – teams have been increasingly turning to sleep aids in a bid to fight punishing jet lag.
But despite the calendar being as packed as ever, some races continue to be under threat of cancellation.
As per De Telegraaf, the Dutch Grand Prix, held in Zandvoort, is set to be axed from the schedule in 2026.
The news will come as a disappointment to Verstappen, for whom it is his home race, and where his journey with Red Bull has been celebrated the loudest amid his meteoric rise in the sport.
The Dutch Grand Prix is set to be axed from the F1 calendar just a handful of years after its return
The Zandvoort circuit has been the site of a number of triumphs for the country’s favourite son Max Verstappen (pictured in 2022)
Verstappen has won the contest for three of the last four years, faltering only this season to hand the race win to former title rival Lando Norris.
But regardless of his race position, Verstappen’s compatriots and militant fans form a formidable orange wall of support, with the Dutch Grand Prix’s brief time in the calendar perfectly aligned with the driver’s ascendancy.
Initially introduced to the Formula One calendar in 1950, the event had previously experienced a prolonged hiatus from 1985 after losing its race contract.
Sport was due to return to Zandvoort in 2020, but this was delayed a year due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The race’s direct Robert van Overdijk has not yet commented on the expected cancellation of grand prix, but the news will reportedly be confirmed over the next week.
The decision will be seen as somewhat of a surprise to the motorsport community, after Formula One boss Stefano Domenicali had previously assured fans that the race would remain on the calendar after 2025, when the current contract expires.
But a number of races’ positions on the calendar remain in flux, including the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps, which is also contracted until the end of 2025.
Last month, Mail Sport exclusively reported that the previously-threatened Monaco Grand Prix had signed a deal to continue the iconic race until at least 2031.
A ferocious ‘Orange Army’ of support has turned out to cheer on the four-time world champion
In an agreement worth more than £150million, the principality kept hold of arguably the most recognisable event in motorsport, despite continuing complaints from drivers and fans over the layout of the track.
Despite Domenicali’s desire to maintain a significant footprint in traditional venues, both he and owners Liberty Media have been keen to expand into new territories too.
As Mail Sport previously reported, a race in Africa remains a target, while South Korea remain keen to see F1 return.
This season will reach its conclusion this weekend with the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, two race weekends after Verstappen clinched his fourth consecutive title in Las Vegas.
