WMSC approves provisional F1 calendar for 2017 season - MotorSportsTalk

The FIA has announced the provisional calendar for the 2017 Formula 1 season following the latest meeting of the World Motor Sport Council.

The WMSC has approved a 21-round calendar for 2017 that follows a similar structure to the 2016 schedule, with three races still subject to confirmation amid ongoing discussions over contracts.

The 2017 season will start a week later than 2016 on March 26 in Australia, before the Chinese Grand Prix two weeks later.

Bahrain moves from round two of the season to round three, forming an early-season back-to-back with China.

The Monaco Grand Prix will once again clash with the Indianapolis 500 on May 28, while the races in Canada and Azerbaijan are back-to-back once again. The race in Montreal is subject to confirmation.

Just as it did in 2016, July features four grands prix before the summer break, the final race of the month being the German Grand Prix, provisionally slated to be held at Hockenheim on July 30.

The Malaysian Grand Prix switches dates with Singapore, becoming the first flyaway round after the stint of European races, while the United States Grand Prix is now a standalone event at the Circuit of The Americas on October 22.

Mexico now shifts to November 5 as the first part of a double-header with the Brazilian Grand Prix (also subject to confirmation) before the season finale in Abu Dhabi on November 26.

Provisional 2017 Formula 1 calendar

1. Australia – March 26
2. China – April 9
3. Bahrain – April 16
4. Russia – April 30
5. Spain – May 14
6. Monaco – May 28
7. Canada – June 11*
8. Azerbaijan (European GP) – June 18
9. Austria – July 2
10. Britain – July 9
11. Hungary – July 23
12. Germany – July 30*
13. Belgium – August 27
14. Italy – September 3
15. Malaysia – September 17
16. Singapore – October 1
17. Japan – October 8
18. USA – October 22
19. Mexico – November 5
20. Brazil – November 12*
21. Abu Dhabi – November 26

* subject to confirmation

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An IndyCar executive said there is “absolutely” disappointment that its long-awaited video game recently was delayed beyond its target date, but the series remains optimistic about the new title.

“Well, I don’t know how quick it will be, but the whole situation is important to us,” Penske Entertainment president and CEO Mark Miles said during a news conference Monday morning to announce IndyCar’s NTT title sponsorship. “Motorsport Games has spent a lot of money, a lot of effort to create an IndyCar title. What we’ve seen of that effort, which is not completely obvious, is very reassuring.

“I think it’s going to be outstanding. That’s our shared objective, that when it is released, it’s just widely accepted. A great credit both to IndyCar racing, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, something that our fans love.”

In June 2021, IndyCar announced a new partnership with Motorsport Games to create and distribute an IndyCar video game for the PC and Xbox and PlayStation consoles in 2023.

But during an earnings call last week, Motorsport Games said the IndyCar game had been delayed to 2024 to ensure high quality.

Somewhat compounding the delay is that IndyCar’s license for iRacing expired after the end of the 2022 season because of its exclusive agreement with Motorsport Games.

That’s resulted in significant changes for IndyCar on iRacing, which had provided a high-profile way for the series to stay visible during its 2020 shutdown from the pandemic. (Players still can race an unbranded car but don’t race on current IndyCar tracks, nor can they stream).

That’s helped ratchet up the attention on having a video game outlet for IndyCar.

“I wish we had an IndyCar title 10 years ago,” said Miles, who has been working with the organization since 2013. “We’ve been close, but we’ve had these I think speed bumps.”

IndyCar is hopeful the Motorsports Game edition will be ready at the start of 2024. Miles hinted that beta versions could be unveiled to reporters ahead of the time “to begin to show the progress in a narrow way to make sure we’ve got it right, to test the progress so that we’re ready when they’re ready.”

It’s been nearly 18 years since the release of the most recent IndyCar video game for console or PC.

“(We) better get it right,” Miles said. “It’s something we’re very close to and continue to think about what it is to make sure we get it over the line in due course.”