The dropping of the Canadian Grand Prix for 2009 was perhaps not the most surprising move given the track debacle of this years event and the precarious nature of it's place on the calendar in the past, but that doesn't mean that it is difficult to shed a tear for the loss of Montreal. For starters, it leaves F1 without a north American event for the first time since 1957 (and then only if you take into account the fact that back then the Indy 500 was technically an F1 event, if you don't then this is the first time in world championship history the continent is ignored), which smacks of counter-productivity given the song and dance made about F1's globalisation with the current rush on the Asian and Middle Eastern markets.The event has been threatened with exclusion before, of course, and perhaps the broken track this season was the excuse Bernie was looking for to replace it with another megabucks event in Abu Dhabi (though the provisional calendar had both events listed, so the 'replacement' accusation is tenuous at best), but if the loss of North America becomes a permanent situation, it would mark the continued failure of F1 to break into that most competitive of motorsporting markets, and the secession of more ground to the bloated NASCAR brand. To prove the point, F1's loss means that the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve's premier event is now its round of the Nationwide Series.
- What happened to different kick off times?
Given that the UK is one of the main viewing spots to benefit from the relentless desire to mess around the kick off of every fly-away event to ensure that it clashes nicely with lunchtime in Europe, this moan may seem slightly disingenuous to some, but the gradual move towards a standardised "midday GMT" kick off time is a load of irksome rubbish. Next year, 12 of the 18 events will begin at that time, with at least one of Suzuka or Yas Island looking to join them as F1's second night race. Add to that the whispers that Malaysia and/or Melbourne will join them for 2010 (both event will begin at 5pm local time next year), and you've got a calendar that offers none of the reassuring chaos of old. It was fun to be up at silly times for the first few and last few races, and the absolute best time to watch a televised GP (early evening) will only be available for the Brazilian event next year. All in all, it is becoming far too homogenised.
- Why so late?
The season next year look set to last for longer than ever, with the final race not taking place until mid-November. But the flip side of this is that the start of the season has been pushed forwards as well. Almost three months of 2009 will pass by before we get to our first event in Melbourne, which is frankly far too long to keep a bunch of demanding F1 fans holding on for. It isn't as if the calendar is choc-a-bloc either. There are three pairs of back-to-back events in 2009, and an earlier starting point may well have relaxed the need for those hectic periods somewhat.
- Summer Holiday
In tandem with the above point, the "summer break" is bigger and better than ever before in 2009. Between the Hungarian event on the 26th of July and the Valencia race on the 23rd August, we have no Grands Prix. Though you can't begrudge F1's overpaid superstars a bit of shore leave, but the whole extended gap causes more issues than it really solves, particularly over the whole "testing ban" issue. Already this year, three teams conducted short "shakedown" tests over the course of the summer, and one of these (i.e. Renault) has also come under a bit of finger pointing for the performance gains they somehow managed to transplant into their "frozen" engine during the break. A longer break will simply allow for more teams to chance their arm at not abiding by the apparent rules, as well as the more pressing issue of giving us nothing to watch for a frustratingly long time.
- Valencia
Why is it still there?
2009 Calendar In Full
| Date | Event | Track |
| 29th March | Australian Grand Prix | Albert Park, Melbourne |
| 5th April | Malaysian Grand Prix | Sepang International Circuit, Sepang |
| 19th April | Bahrain Grand Prix | Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir |
| 10th May | Spanish Grand Prix | Circuit de Catalunya, Barcelona |
| 24th May | Monaco Grand Prix | Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo |
| 7th June | Turkish Grand Prix | Istanbul Park, Istanbul |
| 21st June | British Grand Prix | Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone |
| 28th June | French Grand Prix | Circuit de Nevers, Magny-Cours |
| 12th July | German Grand Prix | Nurburgring, Nurburg |
| 26th July | Hungarian Grand Prix | Hungaroring, Budapest |
| 23rd August | European Grand Prix | Valencia Street Circuit, Valencia |
| 6th September | Italian Grand Prix | Autodromo Nazionale, Monza |
| 13th September | Belgian Grand Prix | Spa-Francorchamps, Spa |
| 27th September | Singapore Grand Prix | Marina Bay Street Circuit, Singapore |
| 11th October | Japanese Grand Prix | Suzuka Circuit, Suzuka |
| 18th October | Chinese Grand Prix | Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai |
| 1st November | Brazilian Grand Prix | Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo |
| 15th November | Abu Dhabi Grand Prix | Yas Island, Abu Dhabi |
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