Critics have labeled Formula One as arrogant and elitist at times, which can seem unfair. Then you see decisions like the one F1 made with its 2026 calendar on Tuesday and think: “Eh, maybe not.”F1’s 2026 schedule features a breathtakingly disrespectful move: a direct head-to-head conflict between the Indianapolis 500 and the Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal — seemingly at the same time, on the same day, on the same continent.The Indy 500 typically has a start time of 12:45 p.m. ET and runs for about three hours. This weekend is, coincidentally, the Canadian GP in Montreal. It has a start time of 2 p.m. ET, and a typical F1 race lasts about 90 minutes to two hours. If those time slots remain next year, they’ll directly overlap for the entirety of the F1 race.F1 doesn’t appear to care. In a post-“Drive to Survive” world, the series has become an international behemoth, gaining a substantial fan following in the United States. A country in which Michael Schumacher could once go completely unrecognized now hosts three grands prix and sees the drivers treated like rock stars; fans pay record-breaking ticket prices and shell out jaw-dropping amounts of money for merchandise sales just to be part of the trendiest sport on the planet.F1 immediately becomes the biggest event at each stop around the world. At the top of the motorsports food chain, F1’s actions give the impression of a lion that does not fight with hyenas.Except in this environment, shouldn’t F1 care? It’s not as if F1 leaders are unaware of the Indy 500; the race is part of the Triple Crown of Motorsport, along with the 24 Hours of Le Mans (sports cars) and F1’s Monaco Grand Prix. Two-time F1 world champion Fernando Alonso skipped Monaco in 2017 to try to win Indy — which would have been his third crown jewel. He tried again, unsuccessfully, during his stint away from F1 in 2019 and 2020.And yet F1 — which is owned by an American company, Colorado-based Liberty Media — is now choosing to trample over what man