An adjusted calendar for the 2020 Chinese Formula 4 season has been released, and hints that a new date has been found for this year’s Chinese Grand Prix.
The first round of the season was due to support Formula 1’s Chinese GP on April 18/19, but that race was cancelled in February in face of the growing threat of the COVID-19 novel coronavirus.
Days later the series announced a Ningbo start to the season, in late May or early June, with the round on the Wuhan street circuit in early May also being cancelled – not surprising given the city was the origin of the race-cancelling virus and subsequent global pandemic.
The revised calendar now starts at Ningbo on May 23/24, with the Qinhuangdao round on July 4/5 and Ningbo round on September 19/20 taking place as expected.
Rather than visit F1 venue Shanghai on October 17/18, the series will now head to either Ningbo or Wuhan. This is because the season will now end at the F1 circuit on an unspecified date in November, and registration details for competitors indicate that F1 will also be racing there that weekend as the entry fee is double that of other rounds.
Previous reports suggested that the grand prix would not be rescheduled for 2020, although China has long been confident of having its circuits running back to usual again as early as May.
The 2020 season will be Chinese F4’s sixth, with no local drivers having yet won the title. However, Chinese drivers have finished runner-up in the points in each of the previous years, and Macanese talent Charles Leong dominated the 2017 season.