F1 could be set for a huge shakeup ahead of the 2029 season, with the return of a legendary manufacturer.

The tyre company Bridgestone are plotting an F1 comeback having left the sport after the 2010 season following 14 consecutive seasons.

F1 offer exclusivity on tyres in the sport which is currently held by Pirelli, who have been providing the tyres to all the F1 team’s cars since the 2011 season.

Back in July, F1 activated a one-year extension to their contract with the Italian brand which will take them to the end of the 2028 season.

The contract for F1 is then offered through a tender process, where F1’s governing body the FIA selects a winner before finalising the deal with the sport.

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Bridgestone have ‘strong’ bid to challenge Pirelli

According to RacingNews365, Bridgestone is preparing to return to F1 with a technological, business and commercial package that succeeds its previously strong bid in 2023, where they beaten by Pirelli to the contract – and report they have a ‘strong chance’ of winning.

Hiroshi Imai, who left McLaren after 15 years in 2024, returned Bridgestone where he worked between 1990 and 2008 in 2025 and is leading the mission to get back into F1, and is a member of the Bridgestone delegates that reportedly were at recent races including the US Grand Prix.

Bridgestone came back to the sport in 1997 with its Potenza tyre alongside previous sole supplier Goodyear and despite having the slower slick tyre in its first year, rapidly improved to force Goodyear out by the end of 1998.

The next two years saw Bridgestone act as sole supplier before Michelin entered F1 in 2001 and started the era’s famous tyre war.

This erupted at the 2005 US Grand Prix, when the Michelin tyres were found to not be safe to tackle the track’s diamond cut tarmac on a steep bank, resulting in just the six Bridgestone runners, including Ferrari and race winner Michael Schumacher to compete.

Michelin then left the sport at the end of 2006 and F1 has intentionally kept just one tyre supplier in the sport ever since, with Bridgestone’s 2010 exit leaving them with 175 wins from 244 races after their 1976 debut.

Pirelli’s excellent F1 record

Pirelli’s exclusive deal is a record for F1, indicating that F1 have been extremely happy with their 16 seasons in the sport.

While their work on producing different compounds with various degrees of degradation to keep the pit-stop strategies interesting, there has been criticism of the Pirelli’s full wet tyre.

It is though to be far inferior to even the intermediate tyre, which is best suited to a slightly wet or even drying track and as a result has rarely been seen on an F1 track under green flag racing.

This has led to wet races being more likely to be run under safety car conditions or even red flagged, although this is in conjunction with F1 cars providing even more spray, making visibility for drivers even harder to contend with.

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It’s not just F1 dealing with concerns over whether the season finale races in Qatar and Abu Dhabi can go ahead, MotoGP has a very similar issue.

The situation is the ongoing conflict in the Middle East has made hosting races in the region tricky.

Many FIA-sanctioned events have already decided not to take the chance, including the Dakar Rally after its January slot in Saudi Arabia was cancelled.

F1 has already cancelled the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix for 2026, which was set to take place in April, while the Bahrain Grand Prix at a similar time was moved to October and in the safer region of Malaysia.

Now the spotlight is on the final two races of the season in Qatar and Abu Dhabi, due to take place on November 29 and December 6 respectively.

There are concerns in the paddock over the safety of the two races, but F1 president Stefano Domencali is still sure they will go ahead, and GPFans understands F1 continue to monitor the situation in the Middle East to ensure they can take the best course of action.

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MotoGP riders have Qatar issues

But F1’s cousin MotoGP, the premier class of grand prix motorcycling racing, will also be travelling to Qatar next month.

In fact, the Qatar Grand Prix falls on November 8 – a rapidly approaching date making it more and more likely the race will go ahead.

According to Autosport, the MotoGP riders organised a meeting between themselves over their concerns for racing in Qatar.

In Indonesia recently, 75 per cent of the riders opposed racing in Qatar, but a compromise has been attempted following a meeting at the Australian Grand Prix last weekend.

Guarantee requests in writing have been made to Liberty Media, who own MotoGP as well as F1, to enable them to go racing, risking a rider revolt if these are not met.

According to the report, these include having a paddock evacuation plan should it be needed, having accommodation costs covered if airspace is closed and repatriation insurance should the Middle East conflict increase while they are at the race.

These requests were put to MotoGP deputy CEO Carlos Ezpeleta on the Friday before the race at Phillip Island.

MotoGP Sports Entertainment Group (MGPSEG) executives claim they have solid guarantees from the Qatari government that the race weekend can go ahead safely.

GPFans have contacted Liberty Media for comment.

MotoGP riders prioritise stronger riders union

It remains to be seen how and if the riders’ actions in MotoGP affect their F1 counterparts.

But the whole issue has strengthened MotoGP riders’ belief they need to have a stronger union to protect their interests.

Alex Marquez said: “I think a series of situations have arisen that have made us all understand that [the association] is necessary.

“We are aware of it and understand that it is for our own good. In 2023 there was an attempt to get it started, but now we have all seen that we need it.”

“It won’t happen here, but we will discuss it again when we return to Europe,” Francesco Bagnaia added.

“The unity of the riders is an important thing. We began thinking about this union in 2023. Although afterwards, for one reason or another, we did not make it happen. Now is the right time to take it up again, and for the riders to have more of a voice.”

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Donald Trump ally Ted Cruz was met with a chorus of boos from F1 fans during the podium ceremony at the 2026 US Grand Prix on Sunday.

The Republican senator appeared on the podium at Circuit of the Americas in Austin to present Kimi Antonelli with the winner’s trophy following the Mercedes driver’s dominant victory.

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But while the 20-year-old world champion elect Antonelli had plenty to celebrate after securing his ninth win of the 2026 season, Cruz received a very different reaction from spectators.

As the Texas senator was introduced during the trophy presentation, loud boos could be heard, with the reaction continuing as he handed Antonelli his prize.

The atmosphere changed as the Italian raised his trophy, with spectators cheering the race winner.

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Cruz, who has represented Texas in the US Senate since 2013, is a prominent Republican and supporter of President Trump.

His appearance at the post-race ceremony quickly attracted attention, with footage of the crowd’s reaction circulating on social media.

Sky Sports F1 commentator David Croft also acknowledged the boos during the broadcast, referring to the upcoming US midterm elections.

The incident came in Cruz’s home state, where the senator has previously faced criticism and opposition over his political positions.

Despite the reception, Cruz later described his visit to the Grand Prix positively in a social media post, congratulating Antonelli on his victory and saying it had been an honour to present the trophy.

Kimi Antonelli closes in on F1 world championship

The podium scenes followed another commanding performance from Antonelli, who started from pole position and controlled the race throughout. The win leaves him on the brink of becoming the sport’s youngest ever world champion.

The Mercedes star could wrap up the title at the Mexican Grand Prix, where a ninth-place finish would be enough to guarantee him the crown regardless of his rivals’ results.

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