Formula One plans to group more races by region in 2023 in an effort to improve its sustainability credentials by reducing freight movements and travel. The strategy was revealed by F1 boss Stefano Domenicali during his regular Saturday meeting with team bosses in Barcelona.

In 2019, Liberty announced a plan to make the sport carbon neutral by 2030, and streamlining the calendar is seen as a key part of that ongoing commitment, along with other initiatives such as this year's move to a higher biofuel content.

At the same time, a more efficient schedule will address the dramatic increase in freight costs that has impacted both the F1 organization itself and the individual teams. The sport has been hit not only by rising prices, but by the increasingly scarce availability of freight capacity.

F1 has talked in the past about consolidating the calendar by region, but has now decided to actively move forward with the change, although it will have to agree any changes with the race promoters.

While some races have traditionally been grouped together, there are anomalies in the calendar in how some races are placed. This season, Miami was an independent race involving a North American trip for just one weekend, while Baku and Montreal are consecutive but obviously geographically distant.

Although Domenicali did not go into much detail in the meeting about what might change, it is understood that Baku could be grouped into a series of races with Shanghai and Suzuka. One complication facing F1 is that the COVID-19 situation in China remains uncertain, and moving it towards the end of the season creates some extra breathing room.

Another option that may be considered is to pair Miami with Montreal, which will mean that one or the other will have to move from its 2022 date by about a month. Monaco's traditional late May date reduces F1's flexibility at that time of year.

Middle Eastern races may also be paired, with Bahrain and Saudi Arabia together at the beginning of the year, and Qatar and Abu Dhabi at the end.