What every F1 driver has said about racing in Qatar and Abu Dhabi as Carlos Sainz statement issued

Carlos Sainz has become the latest Formula 1 driver to address the increasingly uncertain prospect of Grands Prix taking place in Qatar and Abu Dhabi - only to then issue a slightly different view hours later.

During Thursday's driver press conferences ahead of this weekend's United States Grand Prix, the Williams driver said that 'it's very difficult to be convinced' about racing in Qatar and Abu Dhabi amid conflict in the Middle East, including recent Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia.

F1's position is that the races, which are due to take place on November 29 and December 6 respectively, will go ahead as planned, CEO Stefano Domenicali stated at the Malaysian Grand Prix. He added, though, that the decision would be 'subject to the necessary assurances, which are absolutely essential'. But there has been no update since then, and the matter is clearly causing some concern among drivers.

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Here is what every driver has said so far.

Carlos Sainz

Sainz, who is the chairman of the Grand Prix Drivers' Association, made clear that he was speaking from a personal perspective rather than from the perspective of his official role on the prospect of the race going ahead.

"It's very difficult to be convinced right now, because there are still things happening, plenty of things happening in the Middle East," the Spaniard stated.

"And also there is obviously an election that is going to happen in the US [midterms take place on November 3 to determine the next US Congress]. And things that are going to happen in the political side of the world that could affect the next month, month and a half very suddenly.

"So I think it's relatively premature to be so convinced. But as it stands, we will go to Qatar and Abu Dhabi, and if the FIA and Formula 1 decide that it's still safe and a good scenario, I think we, as drivers, have to go with whatever they say.

"We don't have as much political information, as much inside information as they have, for sure, so we need to follow their lead and trust in their decision-making, but only as it stands.

"The world can change a lot in the next month, month and a half, and we need to stay diligent and reactive to whatever happens, and not just go because we want to go right now."

Hours after those comments, Williams issued a statement late on Thursday night with quotes attributed to Sainz, which read: "Following some reporting of my comments in the press conference earlier today about ending the season in the Middle East, I want to be clear that I know the FIA and Formula 1 will put safety first and completely trust them to make the right decision.

"We look forward to racing in Qatar and Abu Dhabi."

Max Verstappen

Max Verstappen was the first driver to speak of his unease about racing in Qatar and Abu Dhabi, telling Viaplay last month: "Normally I am happy to go to Qatar and Abu Dhabi, but you know, when there is a war nearby, and if some of the countries are in conflict with each other, then I think we shouldn't go. Then, it doesn't matter if you have a contract or not, I think. But it's not up to me."

The four-time world champion was asked about the matter again before this weekend's United States Grand Prix, to which he replied: "I just said that I love going there but, of course, under the right terms. But I trust that F1 and then the FIA will take the right decision because they will have more information than us, and that's what we rely on.

"Like I said, I trust that they make the right call."

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Lewis Hamilton

Speaking before the Azerbaijan Grand Prix last month, Lewis Hamilton said he was still hopeful that F1 would be able to travel to Qatar and Abu Dhabi but admitted that he didn't know the extent of the risk levels.

"I personally want to go. I love going to the Middle East. From what I have read, things seem OK out there, but I don't have all the information and I don't know what the risk levels are," he said.

"I trust in Stefano to make the right decision for the sport. And I do hope we get to go there."

Franco Colapinto

During Thursday's driver press conferences, Franco Colapinto echoed the thoughts of his fellow drivers in trusting F1 and the experts to make the right decision.

"They have much more information than what we do," the Alpine driver said. "And they are experts in what they do, and it's their job to decide and decide the best option possible. So I just fully trust whatever they understand is possible."

Oscar Piastri

Oscar Piastri also said he would trust F1 to make the correct decision - and joked about a possible replacement track if either, or both, races are cancelled.

"I think putting our trust in the FIA and F1, there have been difficult situations in the past through conflicts and all kinds of things," he said. "So yeah, we'll put our trust in F1 and the FIA and listen to their advice."

"I mean, the weather in Australia is good this time of the year, so I'm okay with that," he replied when asked what replacement track he would like if that was a necessary step. "We might have to get some snowploughs out if we race in Imola. But no, I don't know. I think I'll leave it to F1. And I think if Imola has just been touted as the replacement then, yeah, hopefully it's above zero [degrees]. That's all I ask for."

Qatar Grand Prix organisers

For their part, organisers of both the Qatar and Abu Dhabi Grands Prix are still preparing for the races to go ahead in November and December respectively.

Abdulaziz Ali Al-Muhannadi, the CEO of the Lusail International Circuit in Qatar - which is due to host both F1 and MotoGP next month - said: "We are looking forward to welcoming the world back to Lusail International Circuit in November for two of the most anticipated events on the international motorsport calendar, just three weeks apart. Our preparations are nearing completion."