Oscar Piastri, Nico Hulkenberg and Pierre Gasly have delivered their verdict on Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali’s mooted re-jigging of the race weekend format.
Since Liberty Media’s acquisition of F1’s commercial rights, the sport has seen a sharp influx of new fans and a shift in the demographic.
Reacting to the sport’s rising popularity, Domenicali had suggested tweaking the race weekend format further to accomodate the ‘shorter attention span’ of the younger fans.
The Italian revealed that he was considering adding more Sprint Races on to the calendar, culling free practice sessions, and the much maligned reverse-grid idea.
In the Azerbaijan Grand Prix weekend, the trio of Piastri, Hulkenberg and Gasly were asked for their opinions on the potential switch that could be adopted on F1 Sprint weekends.
“I mean, I’m personally a fan of Sprint races. I don’t mind them,” Hulkenberg had told media including Motorsport Week.
“I think it depends a bit on the selection of which tracks — some are more suited than others.
“To find the right balance is not easy. We also need our practice time, and we look for perfection and ultimate performance. So there’s definitely a balance to be had, but always open for change.”
Piastri was a little more tentative about his views on adding additional Sprint events to the calendar.
“I think adding more Sprints is not necessarily a bad idea. I don’t think we need or want it to be every weekend,” asserted the Australian.
The incumbent F1 calendar currently hosts six Sprint weekends. Moving forward, Gasly is happy to stick to the format currently employed by the sport.
“I’d be happy to leave it as it is,” said the Frenchman.
“But I’m sure we’ll experience it, and maybe I’ll change my mind in the future. But for now, I’m more towards the current format.”
Drivers give strong stance on F1 Sprint reverse-grid suggestion
The idea of enlisting reverse-grid races has been floating around the paddock for some time now. And everytime, it has been met with immense skepticism from drivers, paddock insiders and fans alike.
This time is no different with Hulkenberg urging the upper echelons of the sport’s management to strive to keep the DNA of F1 intact.
“Reverse grid stuff… honestly, I don’t know,” he continued.
“That’s a bit mixed feelings — and how they would want to do that. It’s a challenge F1 faces. The sport is popular, obviously you always want to enhance and improve the entertainment side, but you also need to cover and keep a balance with the performance side. For us as a sport, we’re looking for ultimate performance.
“And to find the right balance is not easy. We also need our practice time, and we look for perfection and ultimate performance. So there’s definitely a balance to be had, but always open for change.”
Gasly joked he wouldn’t mind reverse-grid races given Alpine’s competitiveness this season. However, he ended up concurring with his midfield rival.
“Yeah, I would not mind the reverse grid for this year,” he quipped.
“That’s what I think – first we’ve got to look at the performance in the coming year, and then I’ll have a more precise answer. But I fully agree with Nico.
“We’ve got to keep some DNA of the sport. The formats we have at the moment — in my opinion — are very good. From a driver’s point of view, you have three sessions, you’re able to work on the car.
“Engineering-wise, it’s good — session to session — to optimise and perfect the car for quali. And then you have one main race, which is the main event.”
Piastri, who currently leads the drivers’ championship, was also not inclined to give his consideration to the idea of entertaining reverse-grid races in the future dubbing it a “bad” idea.
“I think reverse grids…. It might sound obvious from where I’m sat, but it’s a bad idea,” he explained.
“I think also just from a purely sporting and competitive side of things… I think the last thing we want as a sport is things being decided — or critical results happening — because of reverse grid races and stuff like that.”
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