The Chinese Grand Prix has not been a part of the Formula One calendar since 2019 – and the 2023 version was cancelled recently
Formula One officially confirmed last week that the Chinese Grand Prix won’t take place in 2023. The decision comes because of China’s dangerous Covid-19 situation which has also seen public protests against the government throughout the country. The cancellation also means that F1’s record 24-race season is in doubt unless the authorities can find a late replacement before the start of the new season.
China has not hosted an F1 race since 2019. It was one of the first international sporting events to be cancelled in 2020 in the weeks leading up to the pandemic. In 2022, Zhou Guanyu became F1’s first driver from China, debuting with the Alfa Romeo team, but he will have to wait at least another year for a chance to race on home track.
The new season of Formula One is about four months away, but teams already seem to have completed their drivers’ lineup for 2023. The 2023 F1 grid will see several new faces while we will certainly miss four-time World Champion, Sebastian Vettel, who retired at the end of the 2022 season. Let us take a look at the teams and drivers who are set to be a part of the 2023 F1 World Championship.
There will be three debutants in the F1 grid next season – Nyck de Vries (Alpha Tauri), Oscar Piastri (McLaren) and Logan Sargeant (Williams). We will also see the full-time return of Nico Hulkenberg for the first time since 2019, who has replaced Mick Schumacher at Haas. Meanwhile, Aston Martin has roped in two-time World Champion, Fernando Alonso to fill the spot vacated by the retiring Sebastian Vettel.
McLaren has brought in Oscar Piastri after Alonso’s departure from the team. Yuki Tsunoda has moved on to Alpha Tauri while Alpine have signed Esteban Ocon to partner Gasly in the Japanese driver’s place. Nicholas Latifi, Mick Schumacher and Daniel Ricciardo will unfortunately miss out and won’t be a full-time part of the F1 grid next season, as things stand.
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