Wolff still expects Qatar, Abu Dhabi amid latest unrest
"We have to prepare for not four but six more races"
Toto Wolff says Mercedes is still preparing for six more races in 2026 rather than four, despite another sharp escalation in Middle East tensions.
It means Mercedes still expects the season-ending Qatar and Abu Dhabi Grands Prix to go ahead, after months of uncertainty over the region.
Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali recently said both races were expected to proceed as planned.
Wolff referred to that assumption while discussing when Kimi Antonelli could mathematically clinch the championship.
"I think with Qatar and Abu Dhabi currently being held, and everyone is saying that, we have to prepare for not four but six more races," he said on Sunday.
However, the security situation remains volatile.
Saudi Arabia’s King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh was struck again over the weekend, with one person killed and 11 injured in Sunday’s attack, after an even deadlier strike a day earlier.
Separately, US forces struck and disabled a commercial cargo vessel in the Gulf of Oman on October 10 after CENTCOM said it ignored warnings and attempted to breach the naval blockade of Iran.