Abu Dhabi in F1 calender

Source: Agencies  |   2008-6-26  |     NEWSPAPER EDITION

THE Formula One season will stretch to 19 races next year with Abu Dhabi making its debut as the final grand prix in November, the sport's governing body said yesterday.

The International Automobile Federation published the draft calendar, which starts in Australia on March 29 and has one more race than in 2008, after a meeting of its World Motor Sport Council in Paris.

The season will start and finish later than it has done for 20 years, with the final round on November 15. Shanghai will host the race on October 18.

The troubled French Grand Prix retained its slot with a June 28 date but there was still no return for the US Grand Prix, absent this year after eight successive visits to Indianapolis.

Abu Dhabi, with a new harbor-side street circuit, will become the second grand prix in the Middle East after Bahrain.

The Gulf state will be the only new venue after street circuits in the Spanish city of Valencia and a night-time race in Singapore this year. Brazil, previously the season finale, will become the penultimate round instead after a Far East swing through Singapore, Japan and China.

No circuit details or start times were given but Suzuka is due to host the Japanese race next year as part of an agreed alternation with Fuji while it is the Nuerburgring's turn to host the German round after Hockenheim this season.

The Turkish Grand Prix in Istanbul reverts to its August date after being held in May this year, with Spain again the start of the European season at Barcelona's Circuit de Catalunya.

There will be four back-to-back races, starting with Australia and Malaysia.

Formula One has only once before had a 19-round championship, in 2005, but there has been talk of expanding to an upper limit of 20 now that teams do significantly less testing.

The French have a contract to run the race until 2011 but Ecclestone is eager to move it from the rural circuit to a track closer to Paris, preferably close to Disneyland.