The 2011 Bahrain Grand Prix will revert back to the original track layout used between 2004 and 2009, the organisers have revealed.
It was changed to include a slower section in 2010, called the ‘endurance track’ but was criticised by drivers and fans as boring.
Therefore the length will decrease from 6.299km to 5.412km.
Shaikh Salman Bin Isa Al Khalifa, acting Chief Executive Officer of the Bahrain International Circuit, said about the step backwards: “As the inaugural round of the F1 World Championship’s 60th anniversary season, it was important for us to celebrate this momentous occasion by doing something very unique and different.
“One of the major tasks we undertook to mark this milestone was implementing changes to our FIA approved track layout, giving the participating teams of the 2010 F1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix a completely new challenge.
“It was an enormous task given the time frame we had to implement it, but one that demonstrated Bahrain’s characteristics as a race promoter prepared to continually make changes designed to heighten the awareness and increase the levels of presentation associated with the sport of Formula One.
“Both the Grand Prix and the 60th Anniversary celebrations, with 18 of the surviving 20 Formula One World Champions along with the cars that took them to their titles, will be remembered for a long time as a result.”
