When the sprint race format was announced back in 2021, the usual F1 format of practice – qualifying – race was rattled. In the beginning, the sprint substituted a practice session with qualifying, for a short race on Saturday. Based on the sprint race results, the grid would line up for Sunday’s Grand Prix. But after some lackluster outings, the format received another change in 2023. There would only be one practice session, followed by a sprint qualifying, which would now set the grid for Sunday.

At the cost of practice time, the team bosses were hoping the new sprint weekend format would make for some exciting battles. But the revolutionary format seems to have fallen short once again. After a mediocre outing during the United States Grand Prix, fans were left wondering if this format was just a waste of track time. Fret not! Red Bull Racing Boss, Christian Horner, has just the solution for Verstappen’s issues regarding the Sprint Race.

Christian Horner offers a quick fix for Verstappen’s big issue

Even though the sprint races have been dominated by Max Verstappen throughout, he’s also been the one who has the most grievances with the format. He’s been outspoken about how the sprint weekend takes away from the main race, and he would much rather focus on the Grand Prix. And it’s not just the drivers, fans have been left scratching their heads, asking one question.

Is this format really worth it? Christian Horner can think of two possibilities to spice things up. “I think you have got to add a bit more jeopardy to it. Whether you do a reverse the top 10 or something. But then you’ve got to add enough points to it to make it worth. The drivers to really go for it”. Speaking of a reverse grid, Horner alluded to the lack of drama in the sprint, which ends up making the wait between the sprint race and the Grand Prix essentially a long red flag.

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“It still doesn’t quite feel [the same when] you win a sprint race. Obviously, it doesn’t mean quite as much as a grand prix. But I think that we’re in a process where we need to be open to change and evolution”. The main drawback of the sprint race is the fact that the stakes are just not high enough to entice drivers. And if the drivers don’t have something to fight for, the fans are left disappointed as a result.

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While Horner commends the concept, he believes that F1 need to adopt a different approach to turn the heat up. “I think that the concept is fine, but I think the execution: we can do a better job in making it more exciting for the viewer.” The Red Bull Boss made it clear that there is some life to the format. He added, “I think that there’s still more that we could do. I don’t know, it needs some thought to tune it up.”  But will it really be sensible for Red Bull to entertain sprint races when it does not really benefit the fans? Or can the sprint really be redeemed so that it becomes a highlight for those watching?

Can a reverse grid really work? – Toto Wolff plays devil’s advocate

While Christian Horner is hopeful that the sprint format can be turned around with some ‘tuning’, other F1 bosses do not share the same view. Horner’s arch rival, Toto Wolff said he had no intentions to dilute the racing, “I’m conservative in racing”, The Mercedes boss was quick to retort to Horner’s suggestions of a reverse grid, “The attraction of F1 lies in having a true competition between teams. The honesty about the stopwatch is what attracts us. Creating artificial gaming around the sprint race on a Saturday is not the way that I would favor personally.“

Speaking of the reverse grid, the format has a lot of obstacles in its way as well. The faster teams can just reduce their pace to affect the reverse grid order, as they would have no actual incentive to fight from the back. It would cause the frontrunners to struggle until they get caught by the actual faster cars. Wolff added, “Then if we start to meddle even more and do more reverse grid races, we’re going more to a format of junior formulas. Sport follows entertainment, whilst entertainment should follow the sport.”

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It’s evident that Austin’s sprint has left everyone divided in their opinion. So much so that there’s an off-track battle between the 2021 rivalry team bosses! Whether you side with Horner’s reverse grid, or Wolff’s appeal to stick to the classic format, change is needed fast!