• Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton is interviewed after winning the Russian Grand Prix at the Sochi Autodrom to claim his 100th F1 victory, on Sunday, September 26. Reuters
    Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton is interviewed after winning the Russian Grand Prix at the Sochi Autodrom to claim his 100th F1 victory, on Sunday, September 26. Reuters
  • Lewis Hamilton celebrates after the race. EPA
    Lewis Hamilton celebrates after the race. EPA
  • Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton on his way to victory in Sochi. AFP
    Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton on his way to victory in Sochi. AFP
  • Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton crosses the line to win in Sochi. Reuters
    Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton crosses the line to win in Sochi. Reuters
  • Ferrari's Carlos Sainz who finished third. Getty
    Ferrari's Carlos Sainz who finished third. Getty
  • McLaren driver Lando Norris ahead of Lewis Hamilton's Mercedes. AP
    McLaren driver Lando Norris ahead of Lewis Hamilton's Mercedes. AP
  • Rud Bull's Max Verstappen who finished second despite starting the race in last. Getty
    Rud Bull's Max Verstappen who finished second despite starting the race in last. Getty
  • Alpine's Fernando Alonso who finished sixth. Reuters
    Alpine's Fernando Alonso who finished sixth. Reuters
  • McLaren's Lando Norris who finished seventh. Reuters
    McLaren's Lando Norris who finished seventh. Reuters
  • McLaren's Lando Norris leads the pack at the start of the race. EPA
    McLaren's Lando Norris leads the pack at the start of the race. EPA

Formula One cancels contract with Russian Grand Prix


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Formula One has removed Russia as a Grand Prix host after terminating their contract, the championship promoters announced on Thursday.

F1 decided to cancel the contract with Russian GP following the military action in Ukraine.

The decision comes after F1 announced that this year's race, which was set to take place in Sochi on September 25, had been pulled from the calendar. The contract ran until 2025.

A statement read: "Formula One can confirm it has terminated its contract with the Russian Grand Prix promoter meaning Russia will not have a race in the future."

Four-time F1 champion Sebastian Vettel and other drivers had said last week they would not have raced in Russia even if F1 had decided to go there.

The announcement was made after motorsport's governing body FIA said Russian and Belarusian drivers could still take part in its competitions in a neutral capacity.

  • Damage after the shelling of buildings in central Kharkiv, Ukraine. EPA
    Damage after the shelling of buildings in central Kharkiv, Ukraine. EPA
  • Workers from a local construction company weld anti-tank obstacles to be placed on roads around Kyiv as Russia's invasion of Ukraine continues. Reuters
    Workers from a local construction company weld anti-tank obstacles to be placed on roads around Kyiv as Russia's invasion of Ukraine continues. Reuters
  • Anti-war protesters attach sunflowers to barriers in front of the Russian embassy. Reuters
    Anti-war protesters attach sunflowers to barriers in front of the Russian embassy. Reuters
  • Ukrainian volunteers prepare food for displaced people outside Lviv railway station in western Ukraine. AP
    Ukrainian volunteers prepare food for displaced people outside Lviv railway station in western Ukraine. AP
  • A Ukrainian soldier holds an anti-tank launcher north-east of Kyiv. AFP
    A Ukrainian soldier holds an anti-tank launcher north-east of Kyiv. AFP
  • Ukrainian refugees rest at Warsaw East train station in Poland. EPA
    Ukrainian refugees rest at Warsaw East train station in Poland. EPA
  • Children look out from a carriage window as a train prepares to depart from a station in Lviv to the town of Uzhhorod near the border with Slovakia. AFP
    Children look out from a carriage window as a train prepares to depart from a station in Lviv to the town of Uzhhorod near the border with Slovakia. AFP
  • A girl who fled Ukraine is reunited with her father in Medyka, south-eastern Poland. AP Photo
    A girl who fled Ukraine is reunited with her father in Medyka, south-eastern Poland. AP Photo
  • Tears outside a house damaged by a Russian airstrike in Gorenka, on the outskirts of Kyiv. AP Photo
    Tears outside a house damaged by a Russian airstrike in Gorenka, on the outskirts of Kyiv. AP Photo
  • A civil defence member is poised to shoot as a vehicle approaches a checkpoint in Gorenka. AP Photo
    A civil defence member is poised to shoot as a vehicle approaches a checkpoint in Gorenka. AP Photo
  • A Ukrainian civil defence member in the garden of a house damaged by a Russian airstrike. AP Photo
    A Ukrainian civil defence member in the garden of a house damaged by a Russian airstrike. AP Photo
  • Members of the US Army 3rd Infantry Division board a plane bound for Germany in Savannah, Georgia. EPA
    Members of the US Army 3rd Infantry Division board a plane bound for Germany in Savannah, Georgia. EPA
  • Prayers for peace in Ukraine at the Vatican's Saint Peter's Square. AFP
    Prayers for peace in Ukraine at the Vatican's Saint Peter's Square. AFP
  • A woman (right) hugs an arriving passenger from a train carrying refugees at Berlin's central station. EPA
    A woman (right) hugs an arriving passenger from a train carrying refugees at Berlin's central station. EPA
  • Firefighters battle a blaze in a Kharkiv police building hit by shelling. AFP
    Firefighters battle a blaze in a Kharkiv police building hit by shelling. AFP
  • A Ukrainian woman makes a phone call after crossing the Slovakian border. AFP
    A Ukrainian woman makes a phone call after crossing the Slovakian border. AFP
  • A doctor takes shelter in the basement of a Kyiv perinatal centre. Reuters
    A doctor takes shelter in the basement of a Kyiv perinatal centre. Reuters
  • Debris which locals say was caused by shelling in separatist-controlled Horlivka, Donetsk. Reuters
    Debris which locals say was caused by shelling in separatist-controlled Horlivka, Donetsk. Reuters
  • MPs in London give a standing ovation to Ukraine ambassador Vadym Prystaiko, who was in the public gallery. AP
    MPs in London give a standing ovation to Ukraine ambassador Vadym Prystaiko, who was in the public gallery. AP
  • Distraught women and children fleeing Ukraine wait to enter Poland at the Korczowa crossing. Getty
    Distraught women and children fleeing Ukraine wait to enter Poland at the Korczowa crossing. Getty
  • Newborn Ivan lies next to his mother as they shelter in the basement of a Kyiv perinatal centre. Reuters
    Newborn Ivan lies next to his mother as they shelter in the basement of a Kyiv perinatal centre. Reuters
  • Firefighters hand water to people in a Ukrainian train full of refugees in Przemysl, Poland. Reuters
    Firefighters hand water to people in a Ukrainian train full of refugees in Przemysl, Poland. Reuters
  • Ukrainian refugees queue to file for residency permits at Prague's police headquarters. AFP
    Ukrainian refugees queue to file for residency permits at Prague's police headquarters. AFP
  • Firefighters work to contain a blaze in buildings housing the Kharkiv regional police department. AFP
    Firefighters work to contain a blaze in buildings housing the Kharkiv regional police department. AFP
  • A woman and her children sit in a tent in the Kyiv subway, using it as a bomb shelter. AP
    A woman and her children sit in a tent in the Kyiv subway, using it as a bomb shelter. AP
  • Firefighters work to extinguish a blaze at the Kharkiv National University building, which city officials said was damaged by Russian shelling. Reuters
    Firefighters work to extinguish a blaze at the Kharkiv National University building, which city officials said was damaged by Russian shelling. Reuters
  • An elderly woman comforts a child as they take shelter inside an underground station in Kyiv. Reuters
    An elderly woman comforts a child as they take shelter inside an underground station in Kyiv. Reuters
  • People queue at a pharmacy in central Kyiv. Reuters
    People queue at a pharmacy in central Kyiv. Reuters
  • A woman is consoled by a volunteer after fleeing from Russia's invasion of Ukraine, at the border crossing in Siret, Romania. Reuters
    A woman is consoled by a volunteer after fleeing from Russia's invasion of Ukraine, at the border crossing in Siret, Romania. Reuters
  • A Ukrainian civilian in the city of Zhytomyr practises throwing petrol bombs. Reuters
    A Ukrainian civilian in the city of Zhytomyr practises throwing petrol bombs. Reuters
  • Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy poses after an interview with Reuters in Kyiv. Reuters
    Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy poses after an interview with Reuters in Kyiv. Reuters
  • A blast is seen at Kyiv's TV tower. Reuters
    A blast is seen at Kyiv's TV tower. Reuters
  • A girl in Siret, Romania, covers herself with a blanket after fleeing from Ukraine. Reuters
    A girl in Siret, Romania, covers herself with a blanket after fleeing from Ukraine. Reuters
  • Ukraine's ambassador to the US, Oksana Markarova, acknowledges applause from US first lady Jill Biden as they attend President Joe Biden's first State of the Union address in Washington. AFP
    Ukraine's ambassador to the US, Oksana Markarova, acknowledges applause from US first lady Jill Biden as they attend President Joe Biden's first State of the Union address in Washington. AFP
  • A man walks past the remains of Russian military vehicles in Bucha, close to Kyiv. AFP
    A man walks past the remains of Russian military vehicles in Bucha, close to Kyiv. AFP
  • Civilians cross a river on a blown-up bridge on Kyiv's northern front. Defending the capital is a 'key priority', Ukraine's president has said. AFP
    Civilians cross a river on a blown-up bridge on Kyiv's northern front. Defending the capital is a 'key priority', Ukraine's president has said. AFP
  • Russian aircraft on the ground at Luninets Airbase, Belarus, about 50 kilometres north of the Ukrainian border. AFP
    Russian aircraft on the ground at Luninets Airbase, Belarus, about 50 kilometres north of the Ukrainian border. AFP
  • People look at the gutted remains of Russian military vehicles on a road in the town of Bucha. AP
    People look at the gutted remains of Russian military vehicles on a road in the town of Bucha. AP
  • A woman with a child who fled from the war in Ukraine reunite with their family after crossing the border in Medyka, Poland. AP
    A woman with a child who fled from the war in Ukraine reunite with their family after crossing the border in Medyka, Poland. AP
  • Animal keeper Kirilo Trantin comforts an elephant at Kyiv Zoo. AP
    Animal keeper Kirilo Trantin comforts an elephant at Kyiv Zoo. AP
  • An armed man stands by the remains of a Russian military vehicle in Bucha. AP
    An armed man stands by the remains of a Russian military vehicle in Bucha. AP
  • Ukrainian families say goodbye as they prepare to board a bus to Poland at Lviv, western Ukraine. AP
    Ukrainian families say goodbye as they prepare to board a bus to Poland at Lviv, western Ukraine. AP
  • Paramedics move a man who was wounded by shelling in a residential area of Mariupol, south-eastern Ukraine. AP
    Paramedics move a man who was wounded by shelling in a residential area of Mariupol, south-eastern Ukraine. AP
  • Rescuers work at the site of a Russian strike in Zhytomyr. Reuters
    Rescuers work at the site of a Russian strike in Zhytomyr. Reuters
  • US actor and director Sean Penn attends a press briefing at the Presidential Office in Kyiv. Reuters
    US actor and director Sean Penn attends a press briefing at the Presidential Office in Kyiv. Reuters
  • Demonstrators participate in a protest against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine at Lafayette Square in Washington. AFP
    Demonstrators participate in a protest against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine at Lafayette Square in Washington. AFP
  • Ukrainian soldiers rest while others eat near the front line with Russian troops in northern Kyiv. AP
    Ukrainian soldiers rest while others eat near the front line with Russian troops in northern Kyiv. AP
  • A barricade made of trams, buses and sand bags is seen through the window of car in the northern part of Kyiv. AP
    A barricade made of trams, buses and sand bags is seen through the window of car in the northern part of Kyiv. AP
  • Members of the European Parliament applaud after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's speech at a special session to debate its response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Reuters
    Members of the European Parliament applaud after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's speech at a special session to debate its response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Reuters
  • Ambassadors and diplomats walk out as Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov (on screen) speaks during a recorded message at the 49th session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. EPA
    Ambassadors and diplomats walk out as Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov (on screen) speaks during a recorded message at the 49th session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. EPA

However on Thursday, Motorsport UK announced Russian-licensed drivers are barred from competing in the country.

It means the sole Russian driver on the F1 grid - Haas driver Nikita Mazepin - will not be able to take part in July's British Grand Prix.

Mazepin's immediate future in F1 also hangs in the balance. His father Dmitry Mazepin is a part-owner of Haas' title sponsor, Uralkali.

Haas removed the branding of the Russian fertiliser company for the final day of testing in Barcelona last week.

It was latest move by a sporting body against Russia over the military action in Ukraine.

On Thursday, Russian and Belarusian athletes were barred from competing in the Beijing Winter Paralympic Games by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC).

The decision came a day after IPC said it would allow athletes from Russia and Belarus to compete when the Games begin on Friday, but only as neutral athletes.

Earlier, football's governing body Fifa and its European counterparts Uefa suspend Russia's national teams and clubs from all competitions. The Champions League final in May was also relocated from St. Petersburg to Paris.

Also, the International Tennis Federation cancelled all events in Russia and Belarus, but individual players are still competing on the men’s and women’s professional tours.

Updated: March 03, 2022, 1:13 PM