Coronavirus: When will motorsport resume in 2020?
The global coronavirus pandemic has caused sporting events around the world to be postponed and cancelled, with Formula 1, MotoGP, NASCAR, IndyCar and World Superbike among them.
Other series have also paused races in response to the coronavirus outbreak, as large public gatherings will inevitably increase the risk of transmission between hosts.
As series react to the ever-changing effects of the evolving COVID-19 situation, this page will be updated with cancellations and postponements should any more be forthcoming.
When will the 2020 Formula 1 season begin?
As the coronavirus outbreak is widely regarded to have originated in the city of Wuhan, the Chinese Grand Prix was swiftly postponed in the interests of public health.
The Australian Grand Prix was cancelled on the Friday of its race weekend, after a McLaren team member had tested positive for coronavirus. Seven further members of the F1 paddock were also tested, but their results were found to be negative.
Since then, several other races have been postponed, while Monaco and French Grands Prix won't take place at all this year.
The 2020 F1 season is now likely to start in Austria on July 5, possibly with a pair of races at the Red Bull Ring, before further rounds in Europe through to September.
The championship is then planning to visit Asia and the Americas, before concluding in the Gulf countries of Bahrain and Abu Dhabi in December. A revised calendar was obtained by Motorsport.com in May with the Dutch, Canadian and Singapore GPs missing and with Hockenheim ready to serve as a stand-in venue.
Confirmed and likely cancellations:
Australian GP - Albert Park (confirmed)
Monaco GP - Monte Carlo (confirmed)
Dutch GP - Zandvoort (likely)
Canadian GP - Montreal (likely)
French GP - Paul Ricard (confirmed)
Singapore GP - Marina Bay (likely)
Potential calendar as of May 14:
July 5: Austrian GP - Red Bull Ring
July 12: Red Bull Ring ‘2’
July 26: British GP - Silverstone (or Hockenheim)
August 2: Silverstone ‘2’ (or Hockenheim)
August 9: Hungarian GP - Hungaroring
August 23: Spanish GP - Barcelona
August 30: Belgian GP - Spa
September 6: Italian GP - Monza
September 20: Azerbaijan GP - Baku
September 27: Russian GP - Sochi
October 4: Chinese GP - Shanghai
October 11: Japanese GP - Suzuka
October 25: US GP - Circuit of the Americas
November 1: Mexican GP - Mexico City
November 8: Brazilian GP - Interlagos
November 22: Vietnam GP - Hanoi
November 29: Bahrain ‘2’
December 6: Bahrain GP - Sakhir
December 13: Abu Dhabi GP - Yas Marina
When will the 2020 MotoGP season begin?
Marc Marquez, Repsol Honda Team
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
A week before the Qatar MotoGP season opener, tightened quarantine restrictions on Italian travellers gave promoter Dorna Sports no choice but to scrap the race, despite its hopes to get all the personnel needed to start the race into the country on a charter flight from Nice.
As more countries reacted to the COVID-19 situation, MotoGP's second, third and fourth rounds in Thailand, America and Argentina were all postponed and rescheduled.
However, the worsening situation in Europe meant the following races at Jerez, Le Mans, Mugello and Barcelona were postponed with no new dates given, while the next three events at Sachsenring, Assen and KymiRing were cancelled altogether, leaving the Czech GP at Brno on August 9 as the earliest the season could start.
On May 7 it was confirmed that Dorna had struck an agreement to hold the opening two rounds of the season at Jerez behind closed doors in late July on consecutive weekends, subject to approval from the Spanish government.
A calendar of between 10-12 European races is being planned, with the potential for flyaway races to be added to the end of this should conditions allow.
Latest 2020 MotoGP calendar:
| Date | Event | Venue |
| March 8 | Qatar - Moto2 and Moto3 only | Losail |
| May 17 | France - postponed, no new date | Le Mans |
| May 31 | Italy - postponed, no new date | Mugello |
| June 7 | Catalunya - postponed, no new date | Barcelona |
| July 19 | Spain - subject to approval | Jerez |
| July 26 | Andalusia - subject to approval | Jerez |
| August 9 | Czech Republic | Brno |
| August 16 | Austria | Red Bull Ring |
| August 30 | Great Britain | Silverstone |
| September 13 | San Marino | Misano |
| September 27 | Aragon | Motorland Aragon |
| October 4 | Thailand | Buriram |
| October 18 | Japan | Motegi |
| October 25 | Australia | Phillip Island |
| November 1 | Malaysia | Sepang |
| November 15 | GP of the Americas | COTA |
| November 22 | Argentina | Termas de Rio Hondo |
| November 29 | Valencia | Ricardo Tormo |
What is happening in NASCAR?
Alex Bowman, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet Camaro Valvoline Jimmie Johnson, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet Camaro Ally Aric Almirola, Stewart-Haas Racing, Ford Mustang Smithfield Ricky Stenhouse Jr., JTG Daugherty Racing, Chevrolet Camaro Kroger
Photo by: Matthew T. Thacker / NKP / Motorsport Images
NASCAR tried desperately to continue its current season as planned by staging its Atlanta race and Homestead-Miami event behind closed doors.
But, as the United States government finally declared COVID-19 a national emergency, these plans have been scuppered. On March 16, NASCAR announced a suspension of its season through May 3, adding five more races to its confirmed list of postponements. A month later, they called off what was supposed to be the inaugural night race at Martinsville Speedway.
At the end of April, NASCAR finally released plans to go back racing on May 17 with a revised schedule that included one-day shows, midweek races and fans barred from attending. This would include four races in just ten days at Darlington Raceway and Charlotte Motor Speedway.
We learned in early May that races at Sonoma, Chicagoland and the spring race at Richmond have all been cancelled.
On May 14, NASCAR released more of its revised schedule, outlining events until June 21.
Revised schedule:
| Date | Track | Series | Distance | Network | Start (ET) |
| Sun, May 17 | Darlington | Cup | 400mi | FOX | 3:30 PM |
| Tue, May 19 | Darlington | Xfinity | 200mi | FS1 | 8:00 PM |
| Wed, May 20 | Darlington | Cup | 500km | FS1 | 7:30 PM |
| Sun, May 24 | Charlotte | Cup | 600mi | FOX | 6:00 PM |
| Mon, May 25 | Charlotte | Xfinity | 300mi | FS1 | 7:30 PM |
| Tue, May 26 | Charlotte | Trucks | 200mi | FS1 | 8:00 PM |
| Wed, May 27 | Charlotte | Cup | 500km | FS1 | 8:00 PM |
| Sat, May 30 | Bristol | Xfinity | 160mi | FS1 | 3:30 PM |
| Sun, May 31 | Bristol | Cup | 66mi | FS1 | 3:30 PM |
| Sat, June 6 | Atlanta | Trucks | 200mi | FS1 | 1:00 PM |
| Sat, June 6 | Atlanta | Xfinity | 251mi | FOX | 4:30 PM |
| Sun, June 7 | Atlanta | Cup | 500mi | FOX | 3:00 PM |
| Wed, June 10 | Martinsville | Cup | 263mi | FS1 | 7:00 PM |
| Sat, June 13 | Homestead | Trucks | 201mi | FS1 | 12:30 PM |
| Sat, June 13 | Homestead | Xfinity | 250mi | FOX | 3:30 PM |
| Sun, June 14 | Homestead | Xfinity | 250mi | FS1 | 12:00 PM |
| Sun, June 14 | Homestead | Cup | 400mi | FOX | 3:30 PM |
| Sat, June 20 | Talladega | ARCA | 202mi | FS1 | 2:00 PM |
| Sat, June 20 | Talladega | Xfinity | 300mi | FS1 | 5:30 PM |
| Sun, June 21 | Talladega | Cup | 500mi | FOX | 3:00 PM |
Postponements:
Folds of Honor Quik Trip 500 - Atlanta Motor Speedway - 15 March
Dixie Vodka 400 - Homestead-Miami Speedway - 22 March
O'Reilly Auto Parts 500 - Texas Motor Speedway - 29 March
Food City 500 - Bristol Motor Speedway - 5 April
Toyota Owners 400 - Richmond Raceway - 19 April
GEICO 500 - Talladega Superspeedway - 26 April
Dover 400 - Dover International Speedway - 3 May
Blue-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500 - Martinsville Speedway - 9 May
When will the 2020 IndyCar season begin?
Photo by: Scott R LePage / Motorsport Images
The 2020 IndyCar season will be getting underway at Texas Motor Speedway on June 6, with the event – practice, qualifying, race – squeezed into one day. The race will be shortened to 200 laps, no fans will be allowed, and only 20 team members will be permitted per entry.
Initially, the series called off its first four events in St Petersburg, Barber Motorsport Park in Alabama, Long Beach and the Circuit of the Americas.
Then on March 26, the GMR Grand Prix of Indianapolis was confirmed as moving to July 4, forming a unique and very welcome double-header with the NASCAR Xfinity round which this year is switching from the Speedway to the IMS road course.
At the same time, the Indianapolis 500 was shifted to August, with qualifying occurring over the weekend of Aug. 15-16 and the 104th running of the race being held on Aug. 23.
The postponement until 2021 of the Summer Olympics in Tokyo freed up the July/August schedule for IndyCar's TV partner NBC, allowing a shuffle of the July and August schedule beyond just the insertion of the two Indianapolis races. The Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio will now run on Aug. 9, and the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway is now set for Aug. 30. The Grand Prix of Portland, too, has been shifted back one week.
On April 6, IndyCar revealed that what had been set as the new season-opening event – the Detroit Grand Prix double-header – had also bitten the dust, and with no hope of rescheduling.
In its stead, both the Iowa Speedway and WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca events would be turned into double-headers, while a second event on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course – the Harvest Grand Prix – had been added for Saturday, Oct. 3.
However, it has not been set as a finale, because what was once regarded as a canceled season-opener, the 17th Indy car race at St. Petersburg, was redefined as postponed. On May 13, this was indeed proven to be the case, with St. Pete being announced as the season-closer, to be held on Oct. 25.
All these changes mean there are still 15 rounds on the tentative IndyCar schedule, only two fewer than in the pre-pandemic plans. That said, there remains considerable doubt whether the Toronto race will go ahead, given the restrictions on the US/Canadian border and the regulations regarding gatherings in the Ontario capital.
Oregon's restrictions on crowd gatherings through September also suggest the Portland event will run without fans.
Confirmed cancellations:
Barber Motorsport Park, Birmingham, Alabama - 5 April
Long Beach, California - 19 April
Circuit of the Americas, Austin, Texas - 26 April
Belle Isle, Detroit, Michigan - 30-31 May
Revised, tentative 2020 NTT IndyCar Series schedule:
Saturday, June 6 - Texas Motor Speedway
Sunday, June 21 - Road America
Saturday, June 27 - Richmond Raceway
Saturday, July 4 - Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course
Sunday, July 12 - Streets of Toronto
Friday, July 17 - Iowa Speedway
Saturday, July 18 - Iowa Speedway
Sunday, Aug. 9 - Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course
Sunday, Aug. 23 - Indianapolis 500 Mile Race
Sunday, Aug. 30 - World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway
Sunday, Sept. 13 - Portland International Raceway
Saturday, Sept. 19 - WeatherTech Raceway at Laguna Seca
Sunday, Sept. 20 - WeatherTech Raceway at Laguna Seca
Saturday, Oct. 3 - Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course
Sunday, Oct. 25 - Streets of St. Petersburg
When will the World Superbike season resume?
Chaz Davies, ARUBA.IT Racing Ducati
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
World Superbike was fortunate to squeeze in its season-opener in Phillip Island shortly before the COVID-19 situation dramatically worsened in Europe.
However, not long after the three Phillip Island races, it was announced that the second round at Qatar - due to take place a week after the MotoGP race - was placed on hold.
A revised calendar was subsequently issued that did not give the Qatar round a new date, but did feature the third round of the season at Jerez being rescheduled for October. The Assen race was postponed on March 24, and rescheduled for late August.
In mid-April, another calendar revision was issued with May's Imola round being axed entirely and the following two events at Aragon and Misano being postponed, meaning the season now won't resume until July's Donington Park round at the earliest.
On May 7, the Oschersleben round, due to take place at the start of August, was also cancelled, with the Jerez race pushed forward to early August.
Revised 2020 WSBK calendar:
| Date | Venue |
|---|---|
| February 28-March 1 |  Phillip Island |
| March 13-15 |  Losail - postponed but no new date assigned |
| July 3-5 |  Donington Park |
| July 31-August 2 |  Jerez - subject to approval |
| August 21-23 |  Assen |
| August 28-30 | Aragon |
| September 4-6 |  Portimao |
| September 18-20 | Catalunya |
| October 2-4 |  Magny-Cours |
| October 9-11 |  El Villicum |
| November 6-8 |  Misano |
When will the Formula E season resume?
Felipe Massa, Venturi, EQ Silver Arrow 01 Maximilian Günther, BMW I Andretti Motorsports, BMW iFE.20, Daniel Abt, Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler, Audi e-tron FE06
Photo by: Dom Romney / Motorsport Images
The 2019/20 Formula E season has been placed on hold for the foreseeable future.
The Sanya E-Prix was first to be postponed at the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak, followed by the Rome E-Prix after the spread of the virus intensified dramatically in northern Italy.
FE's announcement in early March meant that the Paris round, along with calendar newcomers Seoul and Jakarta, have also been postponed until further notice. In mid-April, series chiefs made the call to postpone the Berlin race scheduled for late June, and a month later it was decided to axe the remaining two rounds on the schedule in New York and London.
Plans are afoot to conclude the current season with as many as three events - with Berlin and Seoul the leading candidates to host races, along with a permanent British track such as Donington Park or Brands Hatch - starting in late July or August.
However, FE chief Alejandro Agag has stated that the season will not extend beyond September, with the following campaign due to kick off in December, and that it if remains impossible to get racing again by then the 2019/20 campaign will be simply abandoned.
Confirmed postponements:
Sanya E-Prix - China - 21 March
Rome E-Prix - Italy - 4 April
Paris E-Prix - France - 18 April
Seoul E-Prix - South Korea - 3 May
Jakarta E-Prix - Indonesia - 6 June
Berlin E-Prix - Germany - 21 June
New York E-Prix - USA - 11 July
London E-Prix - UK - 25/26 July
When will the FIA World Endurance Championship season resume?
#8 Toyota Gazoo Racing Toyota TS050: Sébastien Buemi, Kazuki Nakajima, Brendon Hartley
Photo by: JEP / Motorsport Images
Following the cancellation of the Sebring 1000 Miles event, the FIA World Endurance Championship was left with little option but to postpone the following race at Spa, that was due to take place on April 25, leaving only the Le Mans 24 Hours left on the 2019/20 schedule.
The ACO then postponed the 24 Hours of Le Mans until September 19-20, using a date similar to that used in 1968 when strikes and civil unrest forced it from its usual mid-summer spot.
ACO President Pierre Fillon told Motorsport.com that he's willing to push back Le Mans until as late as November, should it become impossible to host the race on its rescheduled September date.
The preceding Spa WEC race has been provisionally pencilled in for August 15, but this could become a closed-doors race given the Belgian government has banned all mass gatherings until the end of August.
Postponing Le Mans will mean a later start to the next WEC season, which was originally due to begin in September at Silverstone but will now instead kick off in March next year, most likely at Sebring.
As such, the Silverstone, Monza, Fuji and Kyalami races on the original 2020/21 calendar are all in jeopardy, with series boss Gerard Neveu not ruling out a condensed schedule.
Confirmed cancellations/postponements:
Sebring 1000 Miles - USA - 13 March (cancelled, replaced by new Bahrain race)
Spa 6 Hours - Belgium - 25 April (postponed to August 15)
Le Mans 24 Hours - France - 13-14 June (postponed to September 19-20)
What's happening in Supercars?
Jamie Whincup, Triple Eight Race Engineering Holden
Photo by: Dirk Klynsmith / Motorsport Images
Supercars will target a June return to racing, with the next three rounds now formally postponed.
The Tasmania, New Zealand and Perth rounds have all been called off, with the current plan centered around Winton being the next event on the first weekend of June.
A call on the Townsville race will be made by May 15.
The series is looking at a range of format and schedule changes for a truncated 2020 season, including a finale as part of the 2021 Bathurst 12 Hour weekend.
The category has also been running an official Esports series to fill the gap, which has already attracted the likes of F1 race winner Max Verstappen and IndyCar champion Will Power.
Confirmed postponements:
Tasmania Super400 - April 3-5
Auckland Super400 - April 24-26
Perth SuperNight - May 15-17
When will the World Rally Championship resume?
Elfyn Evans, Scott Martin, Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT Toyota Yaris WRC
Photo by: Toyota Racing
The World Rally Championship was fortunate enough to get three rounds under its belt before being brought to a halt by the COVID-19 pandemic, with the opening Monte Carlo event in January, February's Rally Sweden and Rally Mexico in March all being completed.
However, the final day of Rally Mexico was stopped to help people working in the paddock return home prior to travel restrictions being imposed.
The fifth round in Argentina originally slated for the end of April was also put on hold after the country put a temporary ban on international sporting events. That was followed by the news that the following two events in Portugal and Italy would also have to be delayed, meaning the season now won't resume until July's Safari Rally in Kenya.
Rally Portugal was cancelled altogether at the end of April after efforts to have the event moved to October proved unsuccessful.
Confirmed postponements/cancellations:
Rally Argentina - April 30-1 May
Rally Portugal - May 21-24 (cancelled)
Rally Italy - June 4-8
Elsewhere in the off-road world, the World Rallycross season is on hold until August, with a new calendar for the series being issued on May 4.
How will coronavirus affect other international events?
Jamie Green, Audi Sport Team Rosberg, Audi RS 5 DTM
Photo by: Alexander Trienitz
After cancelling its pre-season test at Hockenheim, on March 25 the DTM announced a new calendar, with the season now set to commence at the Norisring in July - with the opening five rounds of the calendar all being given new dates in the latter half of the year.
However, the opening races of the season are now in doubt because of new preventive measures by various governments in Europe.
The FIA World Touring Car Cup has cancelled its opening round at the Hungaroring and has also been forced to shelve its Nurburgring and Vila Real rounds entirely. The BTCC meanwhile issued a new calendar late in April, revealing that the season would now start in August, most likely behind closed doors, and end in November.
In Japan, both Super Formula and SUPER GT have delayed the opening races of their respective schedules. Super Formula is now due to get underway at Motegi on August 29-30, while a reshuffled SUPER GT calendar now begins at Okayama in mid-July. SUPER GT is planning to host its overseas races in Thailand and Malaysia during the winter.
The IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship is on hold until at least June's Watkins Glen round, with the Sebring 12 Hours having been rescheduled for November, Long Beach and Detroit cancelled and Mid-Ohio moved back to September.
Elsewhere in sportscar racing, the European Le Mans Series has dropped Silverstone from its revised calendar, and the GT World Challenge Europe (formerly Blancpain GT Series) has also been forced to substantially alter its schedule, including pushing back its blue riband Spa 24 Hours round to October.
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| Series | General |
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