Why 2026 F1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix is on a Saturday
F1 will be racing on a Saturday this week as the 2026 Azerbaijan Grand Prix takes place in Baku on Saturday, September 26th.
The reason it is not on a Sunday is that the Azeri authorities requested the race weekend be brought forward by 24 hours, as September 27th is the annual Azerbaijani Remembrance Day.
It is a national day of mourning in the country dedicated to the military personnel of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces who lost their lives during the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War.
The conflict began on September 27th, 2020 and lasted until November 10th, 2020, with around 3,000 Azerbaijani soldiers killed during the fighting. The result was declared an Azerbaijani victory.
As such, the change was requested for the race not to be held on this date, with F1 agreeing to shuffle everything forward by one day.
It means media day is on Wednesday, practice is on Thursday, and final practice and qualifying is on Friday before the race itself on Saturday.
The full time schedule is available here.
It is the sixth F1 race to be held on a Saturday since 2023, with the Las Vegas Grand Prix being held on Saturday evening local time since its arrival onto the calendar, meaning it is an early start Sunday morning in Europe.
In 2024, both the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix, the first two races of the season, were held on Saturday owing to the start of Ramadan.
The 2026 F1 Azerbaijan GP in Baku will be the first of two Saturday grands prix in 2026, with the upcoming Las Vegas GP set to be the second in late November.
Also interesting:
Join RacingNews365's Ian Parkes, Sam Coop and Nick Golding as they look back on the Spanish GP! The Madring layout and lack of overtaking is a major talking point, as is Lando Norris' cruel victory loss.
Rather watch this podcast? Then click here!
Get the latest F1 news from RacingNews365 directly in your Google feed! Click on the link below and you’ll see your favourite F1 website appearing even more often. That way, you’ll never miss any news, analyses, interviews, or exclusives.
Follow RacingNews365 on GoogleMost read
In this article
Never miss a thing from the Formula 1 season! Add the 2026 F1 schedule to your calendar at the touch of a button. Subscribe below and put the dates and times of every race directly on your PC or smartphone, so you don't miss a second from the new season.
Download the F1 calendar Download the F1 calendar
A variant with just the race and qualifying is also available.
Click here to download it..
Join the conversation!