What did Verstappen think of the new sprint format in China?

With a new sprint format, drivers seem to slowly adapt to sprint race weekends. This year, qualifying moves back to its traditional place in the format, with the sprint race taking place before. Max Verstappen has previously been very critical of the sprint weekends and gives his thoughts on the current situation.

"Sprint format was better. A bit more straightforward. But let’s not overdo it as well, because we are really doing 24 races a year, six of these sprint events as well," said Max Verstappen after Sunday's race. Verstappen is known not to be a big fan of sprint racing, even though he thinks it is going in the right direction now.

Lando Norris agrees with him. "To be honest, I’d always prefer the old, original race format. This was what I’ve grown up watching. It’s what I’ve always liked the most. the main point is just the toll it has on mechanics and engineers. I don’t think it’s too bad for us as drivers, honestly. I don’t think we can be the ones to complain at all. It’s the hundreds of mechanics and engineers that we have here that have to travel so much. It’s not healthy for them. It’s not sustainable," Norris said.

Sergio Perez also feels that the pressure on the team during sprint weekends is too high. "I think as a sport, we really have to look after our people, our mechanics, because it’s definitely on the limit. I think that’s a point to consider."