Never a fan of the Sprint, Max Verstappen cites last weekend's disqualifications of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc as further proof the format isn't working.

Since it was first introduced, Verstappen has made no secret of his dislike of the format, and last weekend's double disqualification of Hamilton and Leclerc, according to the three-time world champion, only serves to show that it has not been thought through.

"I don't think anyone does that on purpose," he said of the disqualifications, the result of excessive wear to their cars planks, "but it's just even more because of this Sprint format where you only have one practice session where you try to nail everything.

"Once you are in the wrong, there's nothing you can do," he continued. "The only thing you can do is bump up the tyre pressures, but then you're driving around on balloon tyres.

"Of course, it's not what we want to see," he added. "We know that dropping the car gives you performance. But it's just because of this whole format that you put yourself in this position because I don't think anyone over a normal weekend would run like that.

"So I think we should just get rid of the Sprint weekend and then everyone can just set up their cars normally. It wouldn't have happened if we'd had a normal race weekend. These things only happen when you have a Sprint weekend where everything is so rushed in between FP1 one and qualifying and you think 'We might be okay' in terms of setup.

"From our side, I think we went a bit too conservative, but, of course, that's still better than the other way," he admitted.

Following Saturday's lacklustre event, Christian Horner said the Sprints need to involve more jeopardy, while other suggestions have included that old chestnut, the reverse grid, and even a stand-alone championship.

None of which impresses Verstappen.

"Like I've always said 'Why? Why do we need to try and invent something?'" he said. "Our product works if you just make sure the cars are competitive, and the rules stay the same for a long time. Why are we always inventing new things?

"It almost sounds like craziness to say that 'Oh, we need to come up with something'. Just leave it the same. Why do we suddenly need to come up with other things to try and make it entertaining? If you have a good race on your hands with cars close to each other, then you don't need a Sprint format or weekend."

Talk of a stand-alone championship only saw the Dutchman echo the thoughts of the majority of long-standing fans of the sport.

"That doesn't mean anything to me, even if you were to win it," he said. "It's the same now. You cross the line and it's 'Alright, well, tomorrow is the race'.

"There's no satisfaction to win a Sprint for me. Honestly, for me, they can do what they want with the Sprint format because I don't really find it interesting. As I said before, why do we need to keep on trying to make changes when I feel like if it fails."

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READERS COMMENTS

1. Posted by Stitch431, 28/10/2023 7:37

"@Celtic Tiger The would need an extra car for that though, as otherwise they can wreck the race cars of the main contenders."

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2. Posted by Defiant, 27/10/2023 21:13

"You and me both Mr V"

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3. Posted by Celtic Tiger, 27/10/2023 17:54

"I'm not a fan of Sprint races as well, I think it just adds to content burnout (along with the staggering huge calendar).

if the clowns are going so far as mulling over a separate sprint championship and the drivers share the same view as Verstappen, then have the reserve drivers from each team race in Sprint. It would "spice up" the sprint race when everyone on the grid has to put themselves in the shop window every time they race."

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4. Posted by Ricardo_sanchez, 27/10/2023 9:09

"Everything Verstappen said makes complete sense. All F1 needs to be entertaining is close racing, fierce competitiveness and a few drivers with a personality.

If the organisers want to ‘spice up’ Saturday’s programme, they could maybe add a sprint race using identical road-going EVs. Teams would each be given a car prepared for them by the manufacturer (perhaps with some track optimisation) . This would be entertaining, a chance for an EV manufacturer to showcase its products and wouldn’t impact the teams’ F1 programme. "

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5. Posted by Stitch431, 27/10/2023 7:31

"The one thing Max says here that really matters is the fact that F1 should stop changing the rules every 4 to 5 years. Every time they change them, there is one team in front that has done the best job. However, the longer the rules are in place, the closer all competitors get to each other, and the more fun the racing will be. We saw that before Mercedes had the big advantage, but right before the rules overhaul, Red Bull, Ferrari, and McLaren had almost closed the gap. Now Red Bull has the big advantage of having it nailed better than the others. in 2 to 3 years the others will have their systems in order too, and we will see one season of close racing, before the new rules of 2026 will come into place and the whole process will repeat itself again. I watch F1 since the 70s. For some reason this process has been repeating itself over and over again. As if the FOM/FIA is not capable of learning from past mistakes."

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Verstappen remains unconvinced by Sprints

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