Sprint races approved and happening in 2021. Balls.

[XcraigX]

Bottom post of the previous page:

I agree. The sprint races will be a waste of time and will dilute the format.
Make the Sunday race better by being more competitive (change the cars) and there is no need to mess about with the other sessions.

What do you mean by change the cars?

Removing the awful parc ferme rules?

Re-design them so they can pass without DRS. Definitely not another gimmick.

[Antonov]

Have a Sunday morning warmup for all cars qualified outside the top 10.

[Michkov]

How does that help if they cant adjust the setups from Q1 on, not to mention the extra mileage put on the components.

I've got my hopes set on the 22 regs to help out with that even if it's just a tiny improvement. I was really hoping that the budget cap would allow for greater engineering freedom, but that didn't work out, so I guess we are in for two years until everyone has figured out the new regs and then another descend into utter boredom until the next set of regs comes about.

[PTRACER]

Looks like it will happen. Funding was approved. Zzzzz

[Cheeveer]

I still don't get it

[Everso Biggyballies]

I still don't get it

Yeah Im in that camp too. Hopefully not for points otherwise it will just compound the domination factor we have seen in recent years. I dont see what the positive side of it is. I dont see what they are trying to 'fix'. I dont mind admitting I still dont know enough about the whole process and what it replaces / is in addition too. Now they have made a decision I guess there will be factual stuff published regarding the whole new format.
I have to say my initial thoughts are negative. If it is just an additional shorter race at the weekend it will make the whole thing too time consuming for my attention span.
For instance with F2 racing's new 3 race format this year, I did not watch all three races..... I watched two of them.
I will continue to watch qualifying and the main race for F1.

[Everso Biggyballies]

F1 approves sprint races plan at three rounds in 2021

Well I think we all knew that once the team finances were sorted for the Sprint races, it was always going to happen, whether we like the concept or not. Those (teams, FIA, plus I guess Liberty, TV companies and anyone else with money, ie anyone but the fans) have unanimously supported the plan for sprint qualifying trials this year, with the first event set for the British Grand Prix.

Following a vote at the F1 Commission on Monday, the matter drew universal support from all parties.

Although the plan still needs formal approval by the FIA’s World Motor Sport Council before being put in the rule book, this should be a formality.

F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali welcomed the move, which he felt would deliver an added entertainment factor for fans.

“We are excited by this new opportunity that will bring our fans an even more engaging race weekend in 2021. Seeing the drivers battling it out over three days will be an amazing experience,” he said.

“I am sure the drivers will relish the fight. I am delighted that all the teams supported this plan, and it is a testament to our united efforts to continue to engage our fans in new ways while ensuring we remain committed to the heritage and meritocracy of our sport.”

For now F1 has not confirmed where the sprint races will be, merely stating that there will be two in Europe and one at a flyaway event.

However, it is understood that the first two sprint trials will take place at Silverstone and Monza. A final decision on the flyaway, which has long been expected to be Brazil, will be taken nearer the time.

FIA president Jean Todt believed the go-ahead for the sprint race trials was evidence of the collective power F1 has when organisers and the teams work together.

“F1 is showing itself to be stronger than ever with all stakeholders working together in this way, and much has been done to ensure that the sporting, technical and financial aspects of the format are fair,” Todt said.

How the sprint race format will work
The idea is to run a Saturday 100km sprint qualifying race at three grands prix this year.

The result of this race will decide the grid for Sunday’s main event, as well as offering a small number of points (3-2-1) for the top three finishers. The weekend timetable will be as follows.

Friday:

AM: One hour FP1 session with two sets of tyres for teams to choose from.

PM: Normal qualifying format in the afternoon with five soft tyre sets available.

Saturday:

AM: One hour FP2 session with one set of tyres for teams to choose from.

PM: A 100km sprint qualifying race in the afternoon with two sets of tyres for teams to choose from.

Sunday:

PM: Full distance grand prix with two remaining sets of tyres.

In the event of wet conditions:

Three sets of wet tyres and four sets of intermediate tyres will be available at the start of the event.
If FP1 or qualifying is wet, teams will receive an additional set of intermediates but must return a used intermediate set prior to the sprint race.
If the sprint qualifying is wet, teams may return one set of used wet or intermediates after – which will then be replaced with a new set of intermediates.
There will be a maximum of nine sets of wets and intermediates in total.
New parc ferme rules

In a bid to keep costs down and prevent teams from building special qualifying cars on Friday, F1 will change the parc ferme regulations.

After the start of sprint qualifying, cars will be in full parc ferme. However, between Friday’s qualifying session and the start of the sprint race, some limited changes will be allowed.

A small number of components (to be confirmed) can be swapped out and the weight distribution of the car may be altered. The power unit and gearbox cooling may also be adjusted for ambient conditions if there is a 10-degrees Centigrade swing between Friday’s qualifying session and Saturday’s sprint race.

https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/f1-ap ... 1149288203

[DoubleFart]

How do the points work?

[erwin greven]

Podium finishers: 3, 2 and 1 point.

[Everso Biggyballies]

Podium finishers: 3, 2 and 1 point.

Yes, all the details can be found here in the official FIA document:
https://www.fia.com/news/2021-fia-formu ... qualifying

[Vassago]

Pure bullshit. I hope it goes away soon enough.

Watch teams "save equipment" in the sprint races and all this idea about overtaking go straight down the drain. Especially with points only going to top 3 so rich will get richer and that's it.

And of course the argument about starting the GP from the "clean" side which makes a position gain from let's say 11th to 10th in the sprint race totally not worth the effort.

[MonteCristo]

Hey, F1. I'm not going to bother watching.

[Everso Biggyballies]

Hey, F1. I'm not going to bother watching.

You wont be alone.
I also noticed in a poll on racefans website that shows nearly 70% of voters "strongly disagree" with the concept.

[MonteCristo]

Hey, F1. I'm not going to bother watching.

You wont be alone.
I also noticed in a poll on racefans website that shows nearly 70% of voters "strongly disagree" with the concept.

Like I said earlier in the thread, I value my sleep over some sprint race that counts for little. If it's more or less just setting the grid, well, it's as valuable as qualifying, and I miss most qualifying sessions already.

Otherwise, I still think it's ridiculously stupid and pisses on what qualifying stands for.

[XcraigX]

So I'm only counting the Friday classic qualifying session towards GTP. Sprint race results won't matter.
This also means I have to reset all the deadlines as I'm sure the schedule/start times will change.

Not a fan.

[Circuitmaster]

I'll give it a go. From experience, F1 teams react to changes like this pretty much as you all have in the posts above.. so I reckon they'll be pretty uneventful 'races'.