Horner: “It's hard to criticize" Australian GP cancellation timing

Red Bull Racing boss Christian Horner has said that it is “hard to criticize” the timing of the Australian Grand Prix cancellation as upon arrival “there were no positive tests” of coronavirus until McLaren team members’ result.

Formula 1 was set to begin as normal in Australia up until the evening before FP1 was due to start McLaren announced its withdrawal from the race due to a team member testing positive for coronavirus.
 
Horner feels the decision from F1 and the FIA was the right one to cancel but that there wasn’t a solid reason to do it before teams travelled.
 
"I think it's an incredibly difficult decision because it was changing all the time. When we arrived in Australia there were no positive tests yet," he said to Autosport.
 
"We had a positive test and of course the decision is not to race at all. It's hard to criticize that.
 
"If the team member [of McLaren] had already tested positive before we travelled, the whole weekend would have been cancelled before it took place.
 
"Of course it's a pity, but in the end you have to put the health of the fans, the viewers and the teams first.”
 
Since the cancellation of the race in Melbourne, the following rounds in Bahrain, Vietnam, China (Postponed in February), Netherlands and Spain have been postponed.
 
While the Monaco Grand Prix has been cancelled, meaning the current scheduled start to the season is Azerbaijan on June 5.