Barcelona, Monza Replace Middle East Rounds

Circuit de Catalunya-Barcelona and Autodromo Nazionale Monza have been confirmed as the final two rounds of the FIA World Endurance Championship season, replacing Qatar and Bahrain amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

Announced on Tuesday, the widely expected move, which was communicated to teams as the proposed option during the recent 6 Hours of Sao Paulo weekend, was approved by the FIA World Motor Sport Council via an e-vote last weekend.

As previously reported by Sportscar365, both venues were floated as possible replacement rounds in June but was only solidified in recent weeks following the resumption of attacks by Iran and the U.S.

The 6 Hours of Barcelona is scheduled for Oct. 16-18, with the 6 Hours of Monza closing out the season on Nov. 6-8.

ACO President Pierre Fillon said: “We are navigating an exceptionally complex period in the Middle East. Together with [series CEO] Frederic Lequien, we have been monitoring developments on a daily basis and working closely and transparently with all stakeholders to identify the best possible solution.

“The ACO has built strong and lasting relationships with governments, motorsport federations, promoters and partners across the Middle East.

“I would like to express my sincere gratitude to our colleagues in Qatar and Bahrain for their remarkable commitment and for the considerable efforts they have made over recent weeks in an attempt to preserve these two events.

“We are deeply disappointed that we will not be able to race in Qatar and Bahrain this year. These countries have become important members of the FIA World Endurance Championship family, and I want to be very clear – we are fully committed to returning to both venues in 2027 as scheduled.

“We already look forward to being reunited with our partners and fans there.

“In the meantime, I would also like to thank Barcelona and Monza for their responsiveness and for welcoming the World Championship at such short notice. I have no doubt that both circuits will provide an outstanding stage for endurance racing.”

Both the Barcelona and Monza rounds will be regular-distance WEC races and will not award 1.5x points as both races in the Middle East were scheduled to.

Additionally, the Barcelona round is set to clash with the GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS Endurance Cup season finale in Portimao, which Sportscar365 understands will move to Saturday evening to allow drivers to contest both events.

There was no mention in Tuesday’s announcement of the WEC’s traditional end-of-season rookie test, which usually takes place the day after the season finale in Bahrain. Sportscar365 understands this is unlikely to go ahead this year as things stand.

While it will mark WEC’s first race appearance at Barcelona, the 2019-20 pre-season Prologue was held at the Spanish venue.

Monza, meanwhile, makes a return to the calendar for the first time since 2023, a race that was won by the No. 7 Toyota GR010 Hybrid of Kamui Kobayashi, Mike Conway and Jose Maria Lopez.

The famed Italian circuit dropped off the calendar in subsequent years in favor of Imola, which hosted this year’s season opener due to the initial postponement of the round at Lusail International Circuit.