The “shootout” Sprint format did not convince everyone
After the experimentation of a new sprint race format, it's time for conclusions. And for the most part, it's a success. Changes are to be expected, especially in the Parc Fermé, but the teams still want to review this format.
This weekend, Baku served as an experiment for a new format. The sprint race has now been established in the calendar for two seasons, on certain circuits occasionally for the moment. But in Azerbaijan, Formula 1 was experimenting with a new format for these races, which will also be found in Austria.
With only one free practice session on Friday morning, the preparation and familiarization with the circuit is very limited. The Friday afternoon is therefore reserved for the qualifying session for the main race. The Saturday morning free practice sessions have been replaced by a qualifying session for the afternoon sprint race.
A demanding format for the teams
A format that requires diving straight into the weekend. And for most team directors, this format is a success. I don’t think there were many negative aspects. Obviously, you always have to look at what you can improve, […] analyze and see how good or bad it was, shares Günther Steiner, Haas team director. An observation shared by Frédéric Vasseur: I think the format as it is works well. We will see after Austria, but it’s dynamic, it’s good for everyone.
A dynamic format that allows you to always stay in the weekend and focus on the work with the car. That’s what I also think, Andrea Stella, team director of McLaren, who had a good weekend, says: « The format keeps a team very busy. But I think it shouldn’t happen too often. » With this new qualifying session, the car must be optimal in very short deadlines.
Necessary Change
But some teams are still requesting changes. With the elimination of the Saturday morning free practice session, the car goes into Parc Fermé after the Friday morning practice hour. This caused issues for Esteban Ocon, who was arriving with improvements, or Nico Hülkenberg, both forced to start from pit lane after making changes to their cars under Parc Fermé conditions. This is a measure that Otmar Szafnauer wants to see changed: « We had some issues on Friday morning. Each car only had three laps before going into Parc Fermé. We should look into that ». Alpine had a challenging weekend in Azerbaijan, with reliability problems.”
The former team manager of Aston Martin is not the only one asking for the modification of this rule. He is joined by Christian Horner, among others: “Overall, there has been a lot of good. But I think we should extend the time before putting the car under Parc Fermé. One hour to make the adjustments for the entire weekend is not enough.”
Overall, the new sprint race format is a success for most team managers. Changes regarding the Parc Fermé may need to take place to allow more preparation for the teams. However, the teams want to review this format and wait until Austria to draw definitive conclusions.
And you? What do you think of this sprint format?
