AZERBAIJAN: F1 has confirmed a significant change to the sprint format ahead of this weekend’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The new “Sprint Shootout” format will replace the second practice session, with a separate qualifying session determining the grid for a standalone sprint race on Saturday, which will have no bearing on Sunday’s Grand Prix.
The sprint format has had a set schedule since its introduction in 2021, with qualifying taking place on Friday after one 60-minute practise session. A second practice session would be held on Saturday morning before the 100 km sprint race determined the starting order for Sunday’s Grand Prix.
However, F1 and the FIA have now ratified the changes, and the new format will make the middle day of a race weekend a designated “Sprint Saturday.”
In the new format, qualifying for the Grand Prix will come after a single practise session on the Friday of a sprint weekend.
The Sprint Shootout will follow the standard Q1/Q2/Q3 format but with reduced timings for each segment and a requirement to run mandated tyre compounds.
SQ1 will last for 12 minutes with only medium tyres allowed, SQ2 will last for 10 minutes, and the pole position shootout – SQ3 – will last just eight minutes, with the soft compound used by all drivers.
F1 and FIA hope that the changes will leave a smaller margin for error for teams and drivers, increasing the jeopardy and resulting in more unpredictability during the race.
The Grand Prix will happen as usual on Sunday, but the new format has also changed the application of penalties on a sprint weekend.
F1 has confirmed that grid penalties in FP1 and Friday qualifying will apply to the race, and grid penalties from the sprint shootout will apply to the sprint.
Furthermore, grid penalties in the sprint race will apply to the Grand Prix, and parc ferme breaches will mean a pit lane start in both the sprint and race. PU penalties will only apply to the Grand Prix.
Baku will host the first of six sprint events spread across the 2023 season, with the remaining five taking place at the Austrian, Belgian, Qatar, United States, and Sao Paulo Grands Prix. With this new format, F1 continues to experiment and innovate, and we can expect an exciting and unpredictable weekend of racing in Azerbaijan.
Also Read: Former F1 Champion Nelson Piquet Fined for Making Racist and Homophobic Comments
