All your key dates for Formula 1 in 2018 - MotorSportsTalk

With the new year now upon us, attention in racing circles is firmly turning towards the start of the new Formula 1 season in Australia at the end of March.

While there is still plenty of motorsport action to keep you busy between now and the start of the new F1 campaign, many fans will be counting down the days until the 2018 cars are launched and tested before finally hitting the track in anger.

Here are all of your key dates for F1 in 2018 including confirmed car launch dates, testing and the grands prix themselves.

FEBRUARY

February 22: Ferrari 2018 F1 car launch
February 26 – March 1: F1 pre-season testing (1), Barcelona
March 6-9: F1 pre-season testing (2), Barcelona

MARCH

March 23-25: Australian Grand Prix, Melbourne

APRIL

April 6-8: Bahrain Grand Prix, Sakhir
April 13-15: Chinese Grand Prix, Shanghai
April 27-29: Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Baku

MAY

May 11-13: Spanish Grand Prix, Barcelona
May 15-16: F1 in-season testing (1), Barcelona
May 25-27: Monaco Grand Prix, Monte Carlo

JUNE

June 8-10: Canadian Grand Prix, Montreal
June 22-24: French Grand Prix, Paul Ricard
June 29 – July 1: Austrian Grand Prix, Spielberg

JULY

July 6-8: British Grand Prix, Silverstone
July 20-22: German Grand Prix, Hockenheim
July 27-29: Hungarian Grand Prix, Budapest
July 31 – August 1: F1 in-season testing (2), Budapest

AUGUST

August 24-26: Belgian Grand Prix, Spa
August 31 – September 2: Italian Grand Prix, Monza

SEPTEMBER

September 14-16: Singapore Grand Prix, Singapore
September 28-30: Russian Grand Prix, Sochi

OCTOBER

October 5-7: Japanese Grand Prix, Suzuka
October 19-21: United States Grand Prix, Austin
October 26-28: Mexican Grand Prix, Mexico City

NOVEMBER

November 9-11: Brazilian Grand Prix, Sao Paulo
November 23-25: Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Abu Dhabi

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In a continuing effort to help fans keep track of the on track action, SuperMotocross is in the process of developing and implementing leader lights for the unified series.

Currently Supercross (SMX) utilizes stanchions in the infield that are triggered manually by a race official. At least two stanchions are used in each race as a way to draw the eye to the leader, which is especially useful in the tight confines of the stadium series when lapping often begins before the halfway mark in the 22-bike field. This system has been in place for the past two decades.

Later this year, a fully automated system will move to the bike itself to replace the old system. At that point, fans will be able to identify the leader regardless of where he is on track.

The leader lights were tested in the second Anaheim round this year. An example can be seen at the 1:45 mark in the video above on the No. 69 bike.

“What we don’t want to do is move too fast, where it’s confusing to people,” said Mike Muye, senior director of operations for Supercross and SMX in a press release. “We’ve really just focused on the leader at this point with the thought that maybe down the road we’ll introduce others.”

Scheduled to debut with the first SuperMotocross World Championship race at zMax Dragway, located just outside the Charlotte Motor Speedway, a 3D carbon fiber-printed LED light will be affixed to each motorcycle. Ten timing loops positioned around the track will trigger the lights of the leader, which will turn green.

SMX’s partner LiveTime Scoring helped develop and implement the system that has been tested in some form or fashion since 2019.

When the leader lights are successfully deployed, SuperMotocross will explore expanding the system to identify the second- and third-place riders. Depending on need and fan acceptance, more positions could be added.

SuperMotocross is exploring future enhancements, including allowing for live fan interaction with the lights and ways to use the lighting system during the race’s opening ceremony.

Read more about SuperMotocross