(Motorsport) Formula 1 has terminated the contract of the Russian Grand Prix and the country will not be hosting the event in the future. A statement released by Formula 1 said “Formula 1 can confirm it has terminated its contract with the Russian Grand Prix promoter meaning Russia will not have a race in the future.” The race has been one of the most lucrative in the Formula 1 calendar and was added in 2014 after Bernie Ecclestone struck a deal with Vladimir Putin.

The race was originally scheduled to take place in September with the race venue set to be moved from Sochi to St. Petersburg in 2023. However, the contract termination means that the country will not be featuring any Formula 1 races in the foreseeable future. The decision was made last week in a joint meeting between F1, the FIA and team bosses. Earlier, Sebastian Vettel had publicly said that he will not be racing in Russia if the event were to take place with Max Verstappen, Pierre Gasly and Lando Norris echoing similar thoughts.

The sporting industry has been proactive in taking measures against Russia in the wake of their ongoing invasion of Ukraine with the International Paralympic Committee recently banning the country and the Belarusian athletes from the Beijing 2022 Paralympic Winter Games. Motorsport UK had announced on Thursday that Russian-licensed drivers will not be allowed to compete in events at the United Kingdom, which means Haas driver Nikita Mazepin will not be competing at Silverstone in the British Grand Prix later this year.

Earlier this week, Formula 1’s governing body FIA had announced that Russian drivers will be allowed to compete in the upcoming 2022 season but only under a neutral flag. 

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