02/03/2016
NEWS STORY
With two weeks until the season opening race, officials have yet to agree on a qualifying format.
The farce that is the proposal to change the format, took a turn for the worse tonight after a number of drivers met with F1 Race Director, Charlie Whiting.
At what is understood to have been a "heated" meeting the drivers, who included Sebastian Vettel, Kimi Raikkonen Nico Rosberg and Sergio Perez, expressed their unease at the proposed elimination style format.
"We are obviously not very happy with the new plans they want to implement," Perez told Sky Sports F1 after the meeting. "Let's see if they can change it.
"We feel that it could be very complicated for the fans to understand," he admitted, "it's complicated for us.
"We also feel that qualifying is really good at the moment and there is no reason to change that."
Despite being at the 'coal face' the drivers are powerless in terms of changing the rules. However, in the wake of proposals that would see a further revision to the format, the waters are further muddied by the fact that a number of procedural tasks would need to be carried out in the next 48 hours.
Ahead of Friday's meeting of the World Motor Sport Council, the move for a revised format would need to be voted on by the Strategy Group and F1 Commission. As well as the drivers, a number of teams are now thought to be against the idea, Ferrari President Sergio Marchionne having said earlier in the week that he is against the idea.
The proposal put forward following a meeting of the FIA with team bosses would see the new 'knock-out' style format used in Q1 and Q2, with the current format used in Q3.
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