The 2026 Azerbaijan Grand Prix will be one of the few Formula 1 races to take place on a Saturday. The entire Baku race weekend has been brought forward by one day, with media day on Wednesday, free practice on Thursday, qualifying on Friday and the main race on Saturday, September 26.
The schedule change has been made because September 27 is Azerbaijan's national day of remembrance for those who lost their lives in the Nagorno-Karabakh war. Following a request from the local promoter and relevant authorities, the FIA and Formula 1 agreed to reschedule the event.
Although Saturday races are unusual in the modern era, they are not a new phenomenon in F1. A total of 61 Grands Prix have been held on Saturdays throughout the championship's history. Even the first Formula 1 World Championship race in 1950 took place on a Saturday.
A British and South African tradition
The first British Grand Prix to count toward the World Championship was held at Silverstone on Saturday, May 13, 1950. Giuseppe Farina led an Alfa Romeo 1-2-3 in a race attended by King George VI and Queen Elizabeth.
The Saturday schedule was linked to the British tradition of treating Sunday as a day of rest. That practice continued for decades. Until 1985, the British Grand Prix was regularly held on Saturday, with only one exception.
South Africa also developed a long tradition of Saturday races. At East London and Kyalami, practice was typically held on Wednesday and Thursday, Friday was a rest day, and the race took place on Saturday. The South African Grand Prix was held on Saturday 18 times between 1962 and 1985, with several exceptions caused by the New Year period.
When the championship was decided in a car park
One of the most unusual examples came in Las Vegas. The 1981 and 1982 Grands Prix were held on a temporary circuit in the car park of the Caesars Palace hotel and were scheduled for Saturday because the parking area was needed for casino guests on Sunday.
Both races were also directly linked to the world championship fight. Nelson Piquet secured his first title in 1981, while Keke Rosberg needed only fifth place a year later to become world champion.
From the World Cup to Ramadan
The 1978 Swedish Grand Prix was also moved to Saturday to avoid a clash with the World Cup. The race is remembered for another reason as well, as it produced the only victory for the Brabham BT46B, better known as the "fan car".
In 2024, the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix were also held on Saturdays. The schedule was linked to the beginning of Ramadan on Sunday, March 10. Because FIA regulations require at least one week between Grands Prix, the change in Jeddah also meant the season-opening Bahrain race had to be moved forward.
Las Vegas has a different reason for its Saturday schedule. Since 2023, its Grand Prix has been held on Saturday night at 10:00 p.m. local time. For European viewers, that falls on Sunday morning, allowing Formula 1 to retain a familiar weekend feel for much of its global audience while matching the nocturnal character of Las Vegas.
Baku now adds another chapter to Formula 1's history of Saturday races. This time, the reason is neither British tradition, a football tournament, a casino car park nor Ramadan, but a national day of remembrance. Saturday races may be rare in modern F1, but the history of the championship shows that they are far from unprecedented.
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