Formula 1's race on Bahrain's 'Oval' track in December is only expected to be a one-off, according to the circuit CEO.
As the third venue to host back-to-back Grands Prix in the revised 2020 schedule, F1 took the bold decision to differentiate the second Sakhir GP by moving away from the traditional layout and instead use the high-speed Outer Circuit.
This track, which has just 11 corners, is expected to produce the shortest lap times in history at well under a minute, and will also see an 87-lap race, the highest number in a single race for 25 years.
But while the unique circuit is expected to produce an equally unique spectacle, there is no thought the Outer loop could become replace the current Bahrain GP layout.
“It’s an interesting year," CEO Sheikh Salman told Motorsport.com. "Decisions were made, especially with us, because of the situation that we’re in.
“It’s a decision that they made considering the situation that they’re in, and they would have to do more events.
“But if we had one race per year - or if we were chosen for one race only - it would be on the international layout," he insisted.
“The Outer Circuit is a lot shorter track. The international layout is something that we know more fans can see because of the inner part and the technical aspect."
After it was announced F1 would use the Outer Circuit, Romain Grosjean voiced some strong concerns about the track, but others are keen to see how it will unfold.
"It's very quick, it's only a 55-second lap, which is something new," Renault's Esteban Ocon said.
"For me, the racing is going to be awesome. It's probably going to be the biggest fight we've seen for years in Formula 1 with all those straight lines.
"The Bahrain track that we did, it's all the straight line from it. You have two other corners, but most of the cars are going to be slipstreaming, strategy, and racing until the flag.
"That's how it's going to be. I think that's going to be really cool."
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Of course, due to Covid-19, this will also be the latest Bahrain has ever hosted F1 in the calendar year, with the race usually in March or April.
And that means, should the virus situation improve in 2021, there could be a scenario where the country will have its third race just four months later.
“From what we’ve heard, everything is back to normal, and they [Liberty Media] are trying to do what they couldn’t do in 2020," Sheikh Salman revealed.
“For us, November, December, March, is three races in a few months, so that also has its challenges in marketing and all of that.
"We’re excited regardless, we’re going to put on a show when we can," he insisted. “We had big plans for March, and we still can decide when to do that. There are surprises which we will have.”
