The FIA decided today at its World Motor Sport Council in Paris that the 2004 Formula One World Championship will start on March 7th and will end on October 24th.

The FIA will not unveil the official calendar before its October meeting in Paris so a few details remain to be settled. The Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai is more and more likely (October 10th) but the decision concerning the Bahrain Grand Prix is still under discussion, according to a team source.

If the Bahrain race does not take place, the San Marino Grand Prix will remain on the schedule, mentioned the same source. As of now, the 2004 F1 calendar looks like this :

7 March : Australian GP
21 March : Malaysian GP
4 April : Brazilian GP
25 April : Bahrain GP or San Marino GP
9 May : Spanish GP
23 May : Monaco GP
6 June : Canadian GP
20 June : European GP
4 July : French GP
11 July : British GP
25 July : German GP
15 August : Hungarian GP
29 August : Belgian GP
12 September : Italian GP
26 September : United States GP
10 October : Chinese GP
24 October : Japanese GP