Jerez, Bahrain added to GP2 calendar for 2017
The 2017 GP2 Series calendar has been published with a stand-alone trip to Jerez set to host the penultimate round of the championship, while Bahrain also returns to the calendar.
The bulk of the 2017 championship remains unchanged with ten rounds acting as support races to Formula 1 and the majority of the series based in Europe.
After two official pre-season tests at Barcelona (13-15 March) and Bahrain (29-31 March), the 2017 season begins at the Sakhir International Circuit in Bahrain on the 14-16 April.
The European stretch of the season then follows with trips to Spain, Monaco, Azerbaijan, Australia, Great Britain, Hungary, Belgium and Italy.
After the German Grand Prix dropped off the F1 calendar for 2017, the GP2 Series will head to Jerez for a stand-alone round on the 6-8 October before the traditional season finale alongside F1 in Abu Dhabi on the 24-26 November.
GP2 Series CEO Bruno Michel says the move to introduce Jerez as a stand-alone round was to secure an 11-round championship including three flyways, with Bahrain effectively replacing the Malaysia race - fuelling speculation the Malaysian Grand Prix is set to drop of the F1 calendar in the near future.
"I am pleased to reveal this season's calendar which is made of eleven race weekends again, including ten events alongside Formula One and the return of Sakhir," Michel said. "We're delighted to race in Jerez between Monza and Abu Dhabi.
"We wanted to have the same number of events (11) including three flyaway rounds in 2017 as in the previous year, but we were mindful of freight costs. This meant not adding a fourth flyaway round and staying in Europe for a standalone event. This is also why we decided to hold our final pre-season test session in Bahrain, ahead of the season opener."
2017 GP2 Series calendar
13-14-15 March Barcelona, Spain Test
29-30-31 March Sakhir, Bahrain Test
14-16 April Sakhir, Bahrain
12-14 May Barcelona, Spain
25-27 May Monte Carlo, Monaco
23-25 June Baku, Azerbaijan
07-09 July Spielberg, Austria
14-16 July Silverstone, Great Britain
28-30 July Budapest, Hungary
25-27 August Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium
01-03 September Monza, Italy
06-08 October Jerez de la Frontera, Spain
24-26 November Yas Marina, UAE
GP2 will be joined by the GP3 series at all round except Bahrain, Monaco and Azerbaijan
