Six nations want to host F1 as Liberty prepare to break promise and add more races

F1 consultant Mark Gallagher has revealed six countries are in line to join the F1 calendar, with Liberty Media eyeing up extending the F1 season from 24 races to 26.

The ongoing conflict in the Middle-East has resulted in a month long enforced break from the new F1 season, which has seen three Grands Prix so far, all won by Mercedes.

Kimi Antonelli currently leads teammate George Russell by nine points, with F1 returning in less than fortnight in Miami for the second sprint weekend of the season.

The enforced break has led to plenty of speculation surrounding replacement races after the cancellation of Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, with the former in talks over becoming the penultimate round of the 2026 season.

However, Saudi aren't alone in being desperate to return to the calendar, with The Telegraph reporting that the US, as well as South Africa, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and Argentina is also in line.

F1 reportedly considering 26 race calendar

The report claims that this high interest is likely to mean Liberty Media will break their promise of capping the F1 season at 24 rounds, with former Jordan and Red Bull director, Gallagher, backing these claims up.

“There are clearly opportunities to grow this thing further,” Gallagher explained.

“Liberty I’m sure, would like to go up from 24 races, it’s funny, now that everyone has got used to having 24, it becomes less difficult to imagine having 26.

The 24-race calendar has already caused backlash with some drivers following it's introduction last year, but Gallagher explained a decision to extend the season would be heavily driven by finances.

"The easiest way for Liberty to keep growing the bottom line is to get more money pouring in the top, having more events. It’s making everyone richer," he continued.

“You look at what it’s done to the valuation of Formula One teams, they’re now worth $3bn.

'People like Gunther Steiner [former Haas boss] and Christian Horner [the former Red Bull boss], who would like to come back in to Formula One, are finding that even if you raise $1bn, it’s not enough it’s just incredible."