(Motorsport) Formula 1 will introduce a new format called the Sprint Shootout for the 2023 season which will be added to Sprint weekends. The new format was voted through by the F1 Commission and World Motor Sport Council and will be used for the first time in this weekend’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix and on five other occasions. The previous format was introduced in 2021 where a qualifying session was held on Friday followed by a sprint event on Saturday to determine the grid positions for the race on Sunday.
As per the new format, Friday’s qualifying session will set the grid for Sunday’s race while Saturday will feature a Sprint Shootout to determine the order for the shortened 100km race. The Sprint Shootout will be identical to Formula 1’s qualifying session and will be split into three parts, each being short with the final eight minute period potentially leading to one-lap contests to set the top 10. Teams are free to use any tyres available in regular qualifying but it’s mandatory to use new sets of tyres for the Sprint Shootout.
The new format will eliminate a second practice session which takes place on Saturday morning, which has been criticised for providing minimal entertainment. Teams and drivers will now have only 60 minutes on Friday to set up their car for the remainder of the weekend. The objective of the new format is that the sprint will encourage drivers to take more risks on Saturday as it doesn’t determine the grid setting for Sunday’s race.
A statement released read “Following discussion at the F1 Commission meeting in February, clear objectives were set by the FIA, Formula 1 and all teams to investigate how the Sprint format could be improved to increase the level of intensity on-track across the weekend, making as many sessions as possible result in a competitive sporting outcome.
“Following this mandate, the sport’s Advisory Committees and key Formula 1 stakeholders returned a series of recommendations targeting a Sprint format that exists separately within a Grand Prix weekend and does not result in the Sprint setting the grid for Sunday’s main event, delivering more ‘jeopardy’ through a reduction in practice time and providing a greater incentive to drivers to race hard on Saturday. All stakeholders believe that this will boost the spectacle of Sprint weekends and enhance track action for fans around the world.”
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