Melbourne Grand Prix Cancelled Once Again
— 6 July 2021

Melbourne Grand Prix Cancelled Once Again

— 6 July 2021
Garry Lu
WORDS BY
Garry Lu

UPDATE [6/07/21]: The Melbourne Grand Prix – also known as the Australian Grand Prix – has officially been cancelled for the second year in a row. Heartbreak for domestic Formula 1 fans doesn’t even begin to cover it. You can read the Australian Grand Prix Corporation’s formal statement on the matter here.

Our worst fears have been realised, Formula 1 fans. Months of being smug about how “brilliantly” Australia handled COVID-19 has come back to haunt us. As The Guardian reports, the Melbourne Grand Prix is on track to be cancelled for the second consecutive year after negotiations surrounding a quarantine hub for drivers have reportedly broken down.

As the season opener in this year’s race calendar, the Melbourne Grand Prix – otherwise known as the Australian Grand Prix – was initially rescheduled to November 18th, 2021, replaced by the thrilling Bahrain event instead. While Victoria is now almost completely free of locally-transmitted COVID-19 cases (experiencing the sixth day without a locally transmitted case, in fact), strict quarantine arrangements such as halving incoming international travellers starting from July 14th still pose a very real obstacle.

Race organisers reportedly requested a fly-in, fly-out arrangement along with a bio-secure hub designated specifically for drivers, team officials, staff, and so forth from the Victorian government – all to avoid the mandatory 14-day quarantine period, which the packed race calendar simply cannot accommodate. The Victorian government, however, aren’t willing to play ball.

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“With travel caps being halved, with us not yet being at a critical mass of Victorians and Australians who’ve got the jab… running big international events is very, very challenging,” says Premier Daniel Andrews.

“We’ll get to that point by the end of the year [once] vaccines are here in sufficient numbers.”

Australian Grand Prix Corporation CEO Andrew Westacott and Minister for Sport Martin Pakula will make an official decision about whether the Melbourne Grand Prix / Australian Grand Prix is cancelled via press conference at 3 PM (AEST) today.

A spokesperson for the Australian Grand Prix Corporation has stated the organisation will continue working with the Victorian government and Formula 1 management on the “complexities, conditions, and arrangements relating to the staging” of what we all want to see… so perhaps there’s still some hope (albeit a tiny sliver). 

More to come.

australian melbourne grand prix 2021 postponed cancelled

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Garry Lu
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After stretching his legs with companies such as The Motley Fool and the odd marketing agency, Garry joined Boss Hunting in 2019 as a fully-fledged Content Specialist. In 2021, he was promoted to News Editor. Garry proudly retains a blue belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, black bruises from Muay Thai, as well as a black belt in all things pop culture. Drop him a line at [email protected]