'Sprint racing to be overhauled: reverse grid and separate Championship'
Rumors
- GPblog.com
After yet another rather dull sprint race in the United States, teams and Formula 1 seem to have had enough: the sprint races need radical changes. Motorsport.com has learned that there are now talks to make adjustments. Little appears to be off the table, the website reports.
Decisions on what the format should look like in the near future have not yet been made. In any case, it was a thorn in Formula 1's side that Max Verstappen was crowned world champion after a sprint race, and not until the Grand Prix - the main event. Therefore, consideration is now being given to separating the sprint races from the Formula One World Championship. So there might be a separate Sprint championship. In that championship, the winner could potentially earn a substantial sum of money (a million dollars?), as an extra incentive for the drivers.
'Reverse grid an option'
Another option for Formula 1 is to start working with a so-called reverse grid. After qualifying (before the Grand Prix), the starting grid would then be completely reversed for the Sprint; for example, from the number last starting from first place or (as in Formula 2 in sprint races) only for the first eight in qualifying.
Incidentally, not all team bosses are eager to opt for a reverse grid. Toto Wolff, for example, already indicated he is not in favour of it. "I'm conservative in racing. I'd rather have no sprint races than if you start to meddle. Even more with reverse grid races, we are going towards junior formulae where sport follows entertainment, while entertainment should follow sport.
The Mercedes team boss does not get any support from Christian Horner, his Red Bull Racing colleague. The latter, on the contrary, sees merit in adding additional elements that would make sprint races more interesting for the public and the drivers.