10/11/2022
NEWS STORY
Standalone Sprints that would have no bearing on Grand Prix grids are still being considered by F1 bosses, as drivers remain unconvinced by the current format.
Since the concept was first introduced, the Sprint has divided drivers and fans alike. As far as the drivers are concerned, one of the main drawbacks is the fact that an incident in the Sprint can heavily impact the Grand Prix, be it damage to the car or suffering an issue which leads to demotion to the back of Sunday's grid.
Consequently, drivers have been pushing for the Sprint to be a standalone event, meaning that the finishing positions do not impact the starting grid on Sunday.
As it stands, due to the fears a negative Sprint might have on the Grand Prix, drivers are not pushing hard - certainly as hard as F1 bosses would like - while the teams, eyeing the budget cap, even though allowances for damage have been put in place - instruct their drivers to play it safe.
World champion Max Verstappen has never been a fan of the concept, and having voiced his concerns in Mexico, took the opportunity today to reiterate his belief that the Sprint, certainly in its current format, is not working.
"Honestly, I'm just not a big fan of it because I feel like we don't really race," the Dutchman told reporters. "There are a few points that you get, but you also know that you can't really risk it because the main race is where you really get the points.
"You don't do a pitstop, you just put on the tyre which will last the distance, right?"
"With these cars, probably the racing is a little bit better," he admitted. "But overall, you don't really see a lot of overtaking unless there is a car out of position. So then, yeah, it's not really that fun for me.
With six Sprints planned for next season, the FIA is understood to be considering a format whereby the Sprint is a standalone event, with a separate qualifying session to decide Sunday's grid.
"I know that we will have six next year," said Verstappen. "But, I mean, maybe we can come up with things to discuss if we want it in a different way to maybe make it a bit more exciting, at least for me. We'll see."
"Max has a good point that the risks that you want to take in the sprint are less because it decides the position for Sunday," agreed Kevin Magnussen. "So I think maybe a good tweak could be to separate that, so you can go for it."