Formula 1 has experimented with three sprint races in the 2021 season, and plans to celebrate them for even more grands prix in 2022.
The format, aimed at sparking a bigger show by shaking up the grid, has been the subject of debate since it was first used at Silverstone, and its future remains unclear. Zak Brown , CEO of McLaren F1, recently revealed that teams disagree on how much money they should decide to offset the expense of running sprint races.
If that finally blocks the plan to have sprint races in 2022, Formula 1 will insist on them in 2023, when a ‘supermajority’ is no longer needed (28 of 30 favorable votes, which is what is required this year).
Although the drivers are aware that there are things to improve in the sprint format that was presented in 2021, Fernando Alonso considers that since it is an idea created to satisfy the fans, they should be the ones who decide if they do more or if they set aside in the future.
The Spaniard was the protagonist of the first sprint race in history (see it again here) and won two positions in Monza. Having made his debut in such short races, Alonso was very pleased with how the mode had changed.
“I’m happy because it changed the routine a little bit that you’re used to at the weekend. It creates a little more stress with just one session of Free Practice 1 before the cars go to parc fermé. And then there are two races. Yes , it’s going well for us, and maybe that’s why I have a high opinion of sprint racing.”
In the last one, the one in Brazil, he lost several places for going out with the media, but even so he defends that the fans choose what they think: ” I think this format is made for the fans, to improve the show and attract different and new fans. to sport. So I think we should ask them and see what they think: “How about the weekend? What was good, what was not good? And if we have to change something, they must decide.”
“Because I think for the teams, it wasn’t better and it wasn’t worse. It was just different. We prepare for the weekend in a different way, but in the end it’s the same for everyone. So I think we have to put the fans first. And they have to tell us what they didn’t like and try to improve it”, continued the Alpine.
And if we go by the Global Fan Survey that F1 and Motorsport Network launched last year, we find that fans feel that sprint racing has only slightly improved the spectacle of F1 and that they don’t want it to be held at every race. , as it happens in Formula 2 or Formula 3.
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