Formula 1: the leaders change the format of the sprint weekend to ensure more spectacle

Europe 1 with AFP / Photo credit: Morgan Hancock / NurPhoto / NurPhoto via AFP 22:39 p.m., April 25, 2023

Less testing but more qualifying, all for even more show: with a new sprint format expected this weekend in Azerbaijan, scene of the 4th round of the season, Formula 1 is betting on more spectacle on track. The premier category of motorsport is taking advantage of its passage through the streets of Baku, which will host the first of six sprint races of the season, to change its format inaugurated in 2021.

"It will strengthen the show ... and will improve on-track action for fans around the world," the FIA said in a joint statement with promoter Formula One, ahead of the first sprint weekend of the season. Concretely, the drivers will only run one free practice session during the weekend (Friday), followed by the "classic" qualifying during the day, which will determine the starting grid of the Sunday Grand Prix.

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Shorter session

Saturday will be devoted to sprinting. The drivers will take to the track for a second qualifying session (called "Sprint Shootout"), on the same model as the one on Friday but shorter, which will determine the starting order for the sprint race contested on the same day.

In addition to Azerbaijan, the new format will also be raced in five other Grand Prix, in Austria (July 2), Belgium (July 30), Qatar (October 8), the United States (Austin, October 22) and Brazil (November 5).

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"Drive at full speed"

This change of format comes two years after the arrival of the sprint races in the premier class, which were already intended to offer spectacle over three days with "normal" qualifying, that is to say time trial on Friday, which defined the starting order of a 100km race on Saturday, which itself defined the starting grid of the GP on Sunday. According to the FIA, the new format "will give drivers more incentive to drive Saturday".

The latter usually did not take all the risks during the sprint in order to secure their position on the grid for the main race. As the race becomes an independent event, it will no longer have any impact on the starting grid of the GP. The allocation of points at the end of the sprint remains unchanged: only the first eight drivers will score points in the championship.

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Cancellation of a free practice session

The weekend also featured two free practice sessions, the first (FP1) run on the Friday before qualifying and the second (FP2) the next day before the sprint. If the first remains, the second disappears. "I'm not a big fan of FP2, sometimes it's a bit boring," Ferrari boss Frédéric Vasseur said in early April. And for good reason: beyond the lack of spectacle, the teams were no longer able to freely modify their cars from qualifying on Friday.

"Trying to have something more dynamic during the weekend is a good decision," added the Frenchman, on the sidelines of the Australian GP when the teams validated the change. With these sprints, F1 seeks to further monetize an entire weekend, in the grandstand as in media coverage since during a classic GP, two free practice sessions are organized on Friday, without much interest for the public, a third and last on the Saturday before qualifying that determines the grid of the GP contested the next day.