FIA Confirms 20 Races for 2011 F1 Season

For the first time in the history of the sport, Formula One's calendar will be comprised of 20 races. Following an extraordinary meeting held by the FIA's World Motor Sport Council (WMSC) in Paris on Wednesday, it was confirmed that the 2011 Formula One Championship will go to 20 different venues for 20 Grands Prix.

As expected, the 20th entry in the 2011 calendar will be India, although the aforementioned Grand Prix's circuit is yet to be homologated by the ruling body. However, if all goes well, the Indian Grand Prix will be held on October 30th, two weeks after the Korean Grand Prix.

As in 2010, the championship will start in Bahrain, the season opening round being held for the second consecutive year on the Sakhir circuit, midway through March.

Another novelty when compared to the 2010 schedule is that back-to-back Grands Prix will haven 4 times next season, as follows: Malaysia/China, Spain/Monaco, Germany/Hungary, Japan/Korea. Also, the season finale will no longer be held at Abu Dhabi, but at Interlagos (Brazil).

Here is the complete schedule for the 2011 season:

13/03 Bahrain
27/03 Australia
10/04 Malaysia
17/04 China
08/05 Turkey
22/05 Spain
29/05 Monaco
12/06 Canada
26/06 Europe
10/07 Great Britain
24/07 Germany
31/07 Hungary
28/08 Belgium
11/09 Italy
25/09 Singapore
09/10 Japan
16/10 Korea
30/10 India
13/11 Abu Dhabi
27/11 Brazil