China and Miami to stage the Sprint format for the first time next year; Talks understood to be continuing over potential format changes for 2024, including likely change in the schedule of the sessions, plus more radical elements like reverse grids
Tuesday 5 December 2023 20:52, UK
Formula 1 has named the six venues that will stage Sprint weekends in the 2024 season.
China, Miami, Austria, the United States, Brazil and Qatar have been selected as the grands prix that will stage the short-form Saturday race next year.
Discussions among F1 teams and stakeholders about potential changes to the schedule and format of Sprint weekends remain under discussion, with a final proposal set to be submitted to the next F1 Commission meeting in mid-late January.
It is understood that one likely alteration for 2024 is that the session schedule on such weekends will change so that the Sprint Shootout - the qualifying session that sets the grid for the Sprint - moves to Friday, with the 100km Sprint itself and then Qualifying for the Sunday Grand Prix to follow on Saturday.
Beyond that, changing the parc-ferme regulations - which currently prohibit teams from making significant changes to the cars after the single Friday practice session - and more radical ideas such as a reverse grid for the Sprint remain up for further discussion into the New Year.
China, which is returning to the calendar for the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic, will stage the year's first Sprint at the season's fifth race weekend on April 19-21.
The next Sprint will be a first for the Miami GP, on May 3-5, before Austria on June 28-30 will stage a Sprint for the third year running.
The three Sprints in the second half of this season will be the same as 2023 - the United States GP in Austin (October 18-20), the Sao Paulo GP (November 1-3) and Qatar GP (November 29-December 1).
"I am delighted to announce six exciting venues for next season's F1 Sprint events, including two new hosts China and Miami, both of which will be fantastic additions and provide great racing for all our fans at the race and watching at home," said F1 president Stefano Domenicali.
"Since its creation in 2021, the Sprint has been consistent in delivering increased audiences on TV, more on track entertainment for the fans at events and increased fan engagement on social and digital platforms, and we are looking forward to the exciting events next year."
Next season will be the fourth to feature Sprint races at select grands prix, and the third to be included at six of them.
The format, designed to provide competitive track action on all three days of the race weekend, has driven greater global TV audiences, particularly on Fridays compared to standard weekends when the opening day features two practice sessions only. However, the nature of the Sprint has continued to divide opinion among drivers - with world champion Max Verstappen a vocal critic - and fans.
A meeting of the F1 Commission - the body which is made up of the 10 teams, F1 and the FIA - at 2023's season-ending Abu Dhabi resulted in "overall support" to changing the structure of Sprint weekends, effectively creating a better flow between the events of the Sprint and then the main Grand Prix.
While a revised weekend structure is therefore expected to be implemented in time for 2024, discussions continue over what else could change.
Two routes for further consideration are thought to be on the table.
The first would be to make no further changes apart from altering the parc ferme regulations to allow teams to make changes to their cars after the Sprint events.
The second one, which would certainly provoke more external debate, would be whether reversing part of the grid for the Sprint, such as the top 10, could be effectively done.
24 races in 2024! Watch every round of next season live on Sky Sports F1, starting with the Bahrain Grand Prix from February 29-March 2. Stream F1 on Sky Sports with NOW
