12 hours ago
F1 chief reveals TWO major changes being discussed including reverse grids in shake-up
F1 chief Stefano Domenicali is toying with the prospect of reverse grids being introduced in the future.
Currently, all Formula 2 and Formula 3 events involve reverse grid races in their schedule.
1
It means the top ten qualifying order is reversed for the sprint race with fewer points on offer.
Then all the positions below the top ten remain the same for both races.
Domenicali is also exploring the prospect of increasing the number of sprint events, which is currently six out of 24.
He told The Race: "I do believe there are possibilities to extend two things, which we need to discuss, both with the drivers and the teams, and, of course, with the FIA,
"They are - can we apply that [sprints] with more races?
"And is this the right formula to have the possibility to have a reversed grid, as we are doing with F2 and F3? These are points of discussion.
"I think that we are getting there to be mature to make sure that this point will be tackled seriously with the teams."
Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel have previously been critical of the reverse grid idea, while Max Verstappen is not a fan of the sprint format.
Domenicali "The vibes to progress in this direction are definitely growing, and therefore I'm ready to present and to discuss not only more sprints, but if there are new formats, new ideas.
"We are open for that [reverse grids]. because I think that's the right thing, to listen to our fans, to try to create something, and not to be worried to do mistakes.
Toto Wolff defends F1 driver Lewis Hamilton after 'useless' comments
'The one who believes to do no mistakes doesn't do anything new."
Back in 2019, seven-time world champion, Hamilton said: 'The people who propose that don't really know what they're talking about.'
In the past, Verstappen has expressed his dislike for the sprint format, which increases the number of competitive sessions per weekend from two to four.
But Domenicali insists the sprints are here to stay, adding: "I think that the sprint, whatever will be the right format, we need to have it,
'It will represent the future.
'I think that, between six and 24, we have to do steps into the middle.'
