CORONAVIRUS has swept across the globe with thousands already dying from the killer bug.
With little sign of the spread slowing down, bosses in every sport are preparing contingency plans to avoid getting any others infected.
Read our Coronavirus in Sport live blog for the latest news, updates and cancellations
Formula One is no different, with one race already postponed, while discussions are underway for further action surrounding coronavirus outbreak.
What races have been affected due to coronavirus?
The Australian Grand Prix has been cancelled after McLaren went into self-isolation and Lewis Hamilton complained about the race going ahead.
While the Chinese Grand Prix was postponed in mid-February with the Shanghai circuit 500 miles from Wuhan – where the coronavirus outbreak began.
F1 bosses have insisted that they will try to find room for it in the calendar, but with 22 races being scheduled, this could be unlikely.
The inaugural Vietnam GP has nowalso been cancelled, despite attempts to keep it on the original date of April 5.
But with the Hanoi track being just 100 miles from the border of China, it was always unlikely to go ahead.
The second race of the season – Bahrain – was also announced to postponed, having initially been set to take place behind closed doors.
The Government of Bahrain had already revealed any foreign nationals who have visited Italy, Singapore and Hong Kong – among others – in the 14 days prior to travelling to Bahrain are not allowed entry.
This was putting any teams travelling to Singapore and Hong Kong on their way to Australia in doubt, along with the two Italian teams.
When will the season start?
With the first four races of the season already cancelled, the next race on the calendar will be the Dutch Grand Prix in Zandvoort.
That would be its first since returning to the schedule, as the European part of the season gets underway.
Yet, that is not due to take place until May 3 – with F1 chiefs revealing that they may start the season until the end of May, which would be the Monaco Grand Prix on May 24.
Source: Motorsport - thesun.co.uk
