The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix will be staying on the Formula One calendar until at least 2030, the sport announced on Thursday ahead of the season-ending title-decider at Yas Marina.
The race is one of four in the Middle East, with Qatar and Saudi Arabia making their debuts this year on long-term contracts and Bahrain an established fixture.
Abu Dhabi first hosted Formula One in 2009 and is one of the most lucrative races for commercial rights holders Liberty Media.
“We are delighted to confirm that we will be racing in Abu Dhabi until 2030 under this new agreement,” said F1 chief executive Stefano Domenicali.
Mercedes’ seven times world champion Lewis Hamilton and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen are tied on points going into Sunday’s final race.
Meanwhile, Bayern Munich said Thursday that star midfielder Joshua Kimmich would not return to action until January as he recovers from lung damage caused by Covid-19.
Kimmich, who is unvaccinated, tested positive for coronavirus last month.
“I’m happy my self-isolation caused by the coronavirus has ended,” said Kimmich, expected to be one of Germany’s leading players at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
“I’m doing very well, but I’m not yet able to train fully due to slight infiltrations in my lungs.
“I’ll therefore do some rehabilitative training and can’t wait to be fully back in action in January.”
The midfielder will miss Bayern’s home game against FSV Mainz 05 on Saturday, the away game at Stuttgart on December 14 and the final game of the year against Wolfsburg at the Allianz Arena on December 17.
Kimmich sparked a vaccination debate in Germany last month when the 26-year-old admitted he had so far opted against being inoculated due to “personal reasons”
