Why first 2 races of 2024 F1 season in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia are on Saturday

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The 2024 Formula 1 season will start with the Bahrain GP on March 2, quickly followed by the Saudi Arabian GP on March 9, but why are the first two races on the Saturday?

F1 went 38 years without holding a Grand Prix on a Saturday until Liberty Media staged the 2023 Las Vegas GP. Now, Formula 1 will have three Saturday races in 2024, with Bahrain and Saudi Arabia joining Sin City in breaking from the traditional schedule with a Saturday event.

This season also marks a record-breaking calendar for Formula 1 with 24 races taking the 10 teams and 20 drivers around the world. Shanghai is, finally, back on its schedule for the first time since the 2019 Chinese GP. F1 also returns to the Emilia Romagna GP after a year away.

But while the teams and drivers prepare for a record number of Grand Prix in 2024, they are also preparing for a break from the norm with the Bahrain GP and Saudi Arabian GP both on a Saturday. But why has F1 scheduled the first two races on a Saturday and not the Sunday?

Why does the 2024 F1 season start with two Saturday races?

Well, the promoters of the Bahrain GP and Saudi Arabia GP both agreed to move their races to the Saturday so Formula 1 could accommodate Ramadan. It begins on March 10, the day that Saudi Arabia was initially set to hold its fourth race around the Jeddah Corniche Circuit.

So, F1 brought the Saudi Arabian GP forward by one day to March 9. But, in doing so, F1 also had to bring the Bahrain GP forward by one day as its rules enforce at least a week between two races. The races moving to a Saturday also saw F1 bring practice and qualifying forward.

The Bahrain GP weekend will now begin on Thursday, February 29 with first and second free practice. Final practice and qualifying follow in Sakhir come Friday, March 1. While the Saudi Arabian GP weekend begins on Thursday, March 7 with practice, plus qualifying on March 8.

Bahrain and Saudi Arabia join Las Vegas with Saturday races

The Bahrain GP and Saudi Arabian GP have also joined the Las Vegas GP by taking place on a Saturday. F1 has kept its Sin City showpiece race on a Saturday like in 2023 with it set for November 23. They are the only planned Saturday races on the Formula 1 calendar in 2024.

F1 did not stage a Saturday race at all between the 1985 South African Grand Prix at Kyalami and the 2023 Las Vegas GP. But F1’s return to Nevada last year returned the 74th race in the World Championship era held on a day other than Sunday, including the Indy 500 11 times.