– Actually, the 2026 World Endurance Championship (WEC) season was supposed to start on March 28 with the Qatar 1812 km at the Lusail International Circuit in Qatar. In addition, the plan was for the official pre-season test, the so-called Prologue, to take place at the same location the week before, on March 22/23. However, neither of these will happen.
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Due to the current conflict in the Middle East, triggered by the military attack by the USA and Israel on Iran, the Qatar weekend in the 2026 WEC calendar has been postponed indefinitely. The season opener will now take place in Europe, on April 19 in the form of the 6 Hours of Imola in Italy.
And the Prologue will not take place in Lusail either, but also in Imola. The new date for the official WEC pre-season test is April 14. It is the Tuesday of the race week at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari. Unlike the original planning for the Prologue, which provided for two days in Lusail, testing in Imola will only take place on one day.
On April 14, the teams in the Hypercar and LMGT3 classes will have the opportunity to drive for three and a half hours in the morning and another four and a half hours in the afternoon. Three days later, on Friday (April 17), the race weekend of the new season opener in the 2026 WEC calendar officially begins.
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It is not yet certain when the Qatar 1812 km will be rescheduled. According to the current state of planning, the postponed race in the Middle East is expected to take place in the second half of the year.
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The season finale is also scheduled for November 7 in the Middle East, namely in Bahrain. It is conceivable that the Qatar race will be scheduled close to the Bahrain race. In the temporary version, the race calendar for the 2026 WEC season currently includes only seven instead of eight races.
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