Fan-favorite Grand Prix to leave F1 after 2026

In two years time, the curtain will be drawn on a fan-favorite track on the Formula 1 calendar.

Formula 1 has announced that it will hold the final Dutch Grand Prix in 2026 after agreeing a one-year extension to the current contract that expires in 2025. 

F1 returned to the Zandvoort Circuit in 2021 after a 36-year absence, with the return being triggered by the success of Max Verstappen over the recent years.

Verstappen won the first three editions since its return in 2021, with Lando Norris winning this year's race by a dominant 22-second margin. 

The track has been struggling to make the event work financially despite the sellout crowds showing their support for Verstappen.

There were early ideas to help secure a future for Zandvoort by rotating the race with the Belgian Grand Prix, rotating between the two tracks annually, which would've helped better spread the financial allocation and keep the interest in fans eager to return to the track.

However, it seems the Dutch organizers did not want to go down that route and have elected to lower the curtain on the track in 2026.

Zandvoort is on a list of other tracks such as China, Belgium, Mexico and Imola that are on contracts that expire in the next year or two. The future of these tracks remains unknown.