The Sprint format modified to include a second qualifying session
It was a question that had not yet found an answer: how would the six Sprint Grand Prix races of this season unfold? The FIA has approved a modification to the Sprint format, which will be implemented starting this weekend in Baku.
The Sprint races have had several faces: they were a kind of Q4 to define the grid for Sunday, in the form of a qualifying race; they became independent from the other sessions last year. This season, other adjustments have taken place.
The first of the six Sprint races of the season will take place this weekend in Baku for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Until now, ideas had been discussed regarding this weekend. But they will now be implemented, thus changing the face of a traditional weekend.
An additional qualifying session
In this case, the FIA and F1 authorities wanted to encourage the drivers to go “all out” on Saturday, in order to make the weekend more exciting.
This second day of the weekend will be completely different from what we have seen in the past two years: there will be a qualification exclusively dedicated to the Sprint race, called Sprint Shootout. Three sessions will be on the schedule: SQ1, SQ2, and SQ3. The number of eliminat
The choices of tires identical for everyone
The other big variation of this Sprint format in Azerbaijan will come from Pirelli. The strategies to try to save tires for the next part will not be possible during the Sprint Shootout.
The mandatory gum trains will be defined in order to enhance qualification. Medium tires will be used in SQ1 and SQ2, with one train per session, while soft tires will be equipped for SQ3.
For the entire weekend, the teams will be assigned two sets of hard tires, four sets of medium tires, and six sets of soft tires.
Possible penalties
Here again, the authorities have wished to simplify things: any infringement or grid penalty occurring in FP1 or in qualifying will be applied on Sunday, with Saturday being more on the sidelines of the Grand Prix. However, sanctions originating from the Sprint Shootout will be applied during the Sprint.
The same applies to the Sprint: if, for any reason, a driver commits an infringement during the Sprint, their penalty would be served on Sunday, for the Grand Prix.
All in all, Baku will be hosting the Sprint format for the first time in its history. In 2021, we got a glimpse of it in the last two rounds, after a red flag. However, the ultra-fast urban track raises concerns about damage during this 100-kilometer race. Let’s hope everything goes well!
