From the World Cup to a car park: F1's most memorable Saturday grands prix

This year, the Azerbaijan Grand Prix will be held on Saturday instead of Sunday. 

The entire race weekend has been moved up by one day: media day is on Wednesday, free practice sessions take place on Thursday, qualifying on Friday, and the race on Saturday, September 26.

The reason for this is September 27, Azerbaijan’s national day of remembrance for those who perished in the Nagorno-Karabakh war. At the request of the local promoter and the relevant authorities, the FIA and Formula 1 agreed to the rescheduling.

Although Saturday races are rare in F1, they are certainly not a new phenomenon. 

A total of 61 grands prix have been held on Saturdays, and even the very first world championship race took place on a Saturday.

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A tradition in Great Britain and South Africa

On Saturday, May 13, 1950, the first official World Championship race was held at Silverstone. King George VI and Queen Elizabeth were in attendance as Giuseppe Farina led Alfa Romeo to a 1-2-3 finish.

The choice of Saturday was no coincidence at the time. In Great Britain, it was customary to observe Sunday as a day of rest. That tradition persisted for a long time. 

Through 1985, the British Grand Prix was regularly held on Saturdays, with only one exception during that period.

In South Africa, too, Saturday races were the norm for a long time. At East London and Kyalami, practice sessions were traditionally held on Wednesday and Thursday, Friday was a rest day, and the race took place on Saturday. 

In total, the South African Grand Prix was held on a Saturday 18 times: in 1962, 1963, 1969 through 1980, and from 1982 through 1985.

There were a few notable exceptions. The South African Grand Prix was also held twice on a Monday - in 1967 and 1968 - and once on a Friday, in 1965. The reason was always tha the race took place on January 1, New Year’s Day.

World championship battle in a car park

One of the most striking examples came from Las Vegas. The 1981 and 1982 Grands Prix were held on a temporary circuit in the parking lot of the Caesars Palace hotel, serving as the season finale. 

The race was scheduled for Saturday because the casino needed the parking lot back on Sunday for its guests.

Both races also produced a world champion. Nelson Piquet secured his first title in 1981, while a year later, Keke Rosberg needed only a fifth-place finish to become champion. 

These were the only two times the world title was decided during a Saturday race on American soil. In 2026, a third instance could potentially be added in Las Vegas, depending on the championship standings.

From the World Cup to Ramadan

Another notable Saturday race also had a practical reason. The 1978 Swedish Grand Prix was rescheduled to avoid a clash with the World Cup. 

However, the race is best known for the sole victory of the Brabham BT46B, better known as the “fan car.”

In 2024, the Bahrain and Saudi Arabia Grands Prix were also scheduled for Saturday. This was due to the start of Ramadan on Sunday, March 10. 

The race in Jeddah was therefore moved up by one day. Since FIA rules require at least one week between two Grands Prix, the season opener in Bahrain also had to be rescheduled.

The Saturday race in Las Vegas has yet another reason. Since 2023, the Grand Prix there has been held on Saturday evenings at 10:00 p.m. local time. 

In Europe, that’s already early Sunday morning, which allows F1 to maintain the familiar weekend feel for a large portion of its global audience, while the race in Las Vegas fits the city’s nocturnal character.

Baku is also joining that long list this year. This time, the reason isn’t tradition, a soccer game, or a parking lot, but a national day of remembrance. 

Racing in F1 on a Saturday may be unusual, but historically speaking, it’s certainly not as strange as it seems.