This year's Canadian Grand Prix, which was scheduled to be held on the weekend of the 11th to the 13th of June at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, now looks set to be cancelled for public health reasons.

The race held on a temporary street circuit which has to be built in advance before the race was also cancelled last year due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and it will be only the third time in twenty years that Formula 1 will not head to Canada.

Radio Canada revealed on Thursday that there were concerns over Formula 1 personnel mixing with local circuit staff and volunteers with a steep financial cost if the race was held behind closed doors.

Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali wrote to the Canadian government in March to ask Formula 1 teams to be exempted from quarantine. Domenicali proposed that Formula 1 could follow the bubble system used for last year's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

However, Domenicali's plan was compromised because Montreal hotel staff and local volunteers would have to quarantine as well before the race weekend making it impractical in the eyes of local officials.

However, the promoters played down the news by Radio Canada stating that they were still in discussion with the sport to host the race.

A spokesman for the promoters told Motorsport.com, "What Radio Canada is referring to is a document of recommendations from public health. We as an organisation have not had confirmation from our public health officials and won't comment until we get an official confirmation."

Formula 1 themselves released a brief statement on the escalating crisis.

"We are continuing our discussions with the promoter in Canada and have no further comment."

If the Canadian Grand Prix was to be officially cancelled, Istanbul would inherit Canada's slot, with the circuit being chosen as the Plan B option.