Lewis Hamilton has called on the FIA to introduce shorter race weekends in Formula 1.
The series is currently undergoing a four-week break after the first three flyaway races but will embark on a run of 10 races in only 14 weeks upon its return.
With the teams and drivers being mandated to arrive early to set up the cars and fulfil media obligations respectively, it will leave F1-related personnel away from home for a considerable period up to the annual summer break in August.
While conceding he hadn’t previously considered the topic much, Hamilton has admitted the Sprint weekend format introduced in 2021 has been something he has found to be effective, suggesting that could be the template for how rounds could be regularly shaped down the line.
However, the Brit would like to see a revised solution considered for circuits such as Monaco where overtaking is notoriously difficult.
“I’ve not really thought about it much,” he pondered ahead of the Australian Grand Prix. “I think they’ve experimented with the Sprint race weekend, which I think is cool.
“There’s going to be places where it’s not going to be good, like Monaco, where it would just be two of the same race!
“I think that we can be more dynamic, and I think we can look at places like Monaco where perhaps there’s a different kind of solution for that weekend to make it more engaging for fans. But then use the sprint races in some places, and maybe there’s something else we could do.
“I like the format on the Sprint weekend where you have that one practice session, there’s a lot of pressure just to get that right, and then you’re straight into qualifying. I’ve loved and enjoyed that recently,” he added.
A normal F1 race weekend currently consists of three one-hour practice sessions, two on Friday followed by a further 60-minute session on Saturday morning ahead of qualifying two hours later.
However, Sprint weekends allow the drivers only one practice outing to perfect their set-ups ahead of the one-hour shootout for grid position on Friday evening, followed by two races across the weekend.
Hamilton’s comments have come after F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali said he would consider altering the set-up of a Friday on race weekends, including the potential to add points for practice or to cut down on those sessions entirely.
The seven-time World Champion has insisted that cutting down to a three-day weekend in total would be a more efficient way of doing things for the sport.
“I think the time can be spent better through the weekend,” he continued. “Three days, there’s a lot of time in-between sessions.
“You look at the Middle East, we were just in Jeddah for example, not into the track until 3 p.m. There’s a lot of downtime.
“I think we can be more efficient; I think it should be down to a three-day weekend. That saves people travel time.”
Mercedes team-mate George Russell is one of a number of other drivers who have supported a mooted reamendment to the racing weekend schedule.
However, Max Verstappen has reiterated his displeasure at the Sprint format – increased up to six weekends this year from three in 2022 – arguing that the shorter dashes to the flag are about survival rather than racing.
But the current format where the finishing order of the Sprint sets the grid for the main race on Sunday could be altered this year with two qualifying sessions for each individual race.
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