China and Miami will host their first-ever Formula 1 sprint races in the 2024 season, joining Austria, Texas, Brazil, and Qatar as the grands prix selected for F1’s alternative weekend format next year. However, the format itself is yet to be finalized, with almost everyone in favor of tweaking the order of events (again) to make it less of a, um, snoozefest.
Which has got to be a good thing. Currently, F1 sprint weekends see qualifying for the grand prix shunted forward to Friday, with the teams then locked into their setups having had just one practice session to get things right.
Saturdays are then dedicated to the sprint shootout—basically a mini-qualifying—and the sprint race itself.
The problem is, we tend to know who’ll be quick in the shootout before it happens, and then the sprint usually gives away the grid’s race pace ahead of the grand prix. So it’s a massive, Monaco-spec spoiler.
Even so, F1 bosses are adamant that sprint races drive up interest in races, pointing to research by Nielsen suggesting that the sprint races in Baku and Austin boosted viewership for qualifying by 83% and 139%, respectively. The Belgian GP saw a 34% increase.
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That said, those are numbers compared to what F1 would typically see for a second practice session. Does anyone actually watch the practice sessions?
Anyway, the Sporting Advisory Committee is going to look at plans for rejigging the format: One idea is to have the shootout on Friday, with the sprint race on Saturday acting as a high-octane amuse bouche for qualifying proper. It’s also going to look into F1’s parc ferme rules, and will perhaps allow teams to make changes to their cars so they’re not locked into a rubbish set-up that makes the whole weekend a write-off.
Oh, and rumor has it that reverse grids—or possibly partial reverse grids—will be considered to jazz up the action. Watch this space.
“I am delighted to announce six exciting venues for next season’s F1 Sprint events, including two new hosts China and Miami, both of which will be fantastic additions and provide great racing for all our fans at the race and watching at home,” said Stefano Domenicali, president and CEO of F1.
“Since its creation in 2021, the Sprint has been consistent in delivering increased audiences on TV, more on track entertainment for the fans at events and increased fan engagement on social and digital platforms, and we are looking forward to the exciting events next year.”
Whaddya think, folks?
NOTE: This article first appeared on TopGear.com. Minor edits have been made.
