London: Its official now, the Organisers have called off the season-opening Formula One race in Bahrain because of anti-government protests in the Gulf kingdom.
Bahrain Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa says the country must ‘focus on immediate issues of national interest and leave the hosting of Bahrain's Formula One race to a later date.’
Eaelier, the Formula One teams cancelled a scheduled testing session in Bahrain next week owing to the same reason, Sky News reported.
Bahrain's season-opening Grand Prix in Manama on March 13 is under severe threat, with F1 rights holder Bernie Ecclestone set for talks with Bahrain's crown prince on Monday.
As Bahrain is called off, the season would get underway with the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne on March 27, according to media.
The decision by F1 teams to cancel testing in Manama on March 3 was reported on Sky, with an official confirmation expected later on Monday.
The teams met to discuss the issue at pre-season testing in Barcelona.
On Sunday Ecclestone said he would leave a decision on whether it was safe for the race to go ahead to Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa.
Asked when a decision on the race's future would be made, Ecclestone told BBC 5 Live's Sportsweek programme: ‘Probably Tuesday.’
"I haven't spoken to the Crown Prince this morning (Sunday) so I don't know what's happened there. If anybody's going to sort it out he's the guy to do it.
"He would decide whether or not it's safe for us to be there.
"Let's wait until Tuesday and see if this one's going to take place before we decide what to do. Maybe we could postpone Bahrain or run it later in the year."
Red Bull driver Mark Webber is among those to have voiced reservations over the Bahrain race.
"When you hear of people losing their lives, this is a tragedy," the Australian told the BBC.
"It's probably not the best time to go there for a sporting event. They have bigger things, bigger priorities."
A later report on the BBC quoted an unnamed F1 team confirming the decision to cancel next week's three day testing session.
The source added that the Grand Prix itself was due to be postponed as to let it go ahead as planned would be ‘incendiary’ to the delicate political situation in the state.
The GP2 Series race scheduled to take place in Bahrain last weekend was cancelled after pro-democracy protests that have led to deadly clashes with police.
The unrest in the small Gulf state of Bahrain is part of a wave of protests that have rippled across North Africa and the Middle East since the revolt that ousted Tunisian president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in January.