Verstappen And Russell Share Their Thoughts On Rookie F1 Sprint Race Idea
F1Monday, 09 September 2024 at 16:57
Max Verstappen and George Russell reacted to F1 president Stefano Domenicali's proposal to have a rookie sprint race after the 2024 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Formula 1 president Stefano Domenicali recently shared that the F1 seriously considered having a young driver sprint race after the 2024 season finale in Abu Dhabi.
Once the 2024 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix is over, F1 teams still have an on-track day at Yas Marina Circuit—this is called post-season testing.
Current regulations prescribe that teams have two cars at the testing, one with a rookie driver who hasn't competed in more than two Grand Prix races and one with an F1 driver who will test Pirelli tires for next season.
F1 is considering adding a Sprint session, which would give the rookies even more opportunity to shine and experience. When Max Verstappen (who recently also named his dream teammate lineup for Le Mans) was asked about this idea, he said:
"Not my problem. I'm on holidays [at that point]. I don't know. I don't think everyone is excited after the final race to then do another race on Tuesday. If you want to give rookies a chance, just put them in the car."
While the triple World Champion wasn't particularly intrigued by the idea of a rookie Sprint race, George Russell seemed to like it more. He said:
"I actually quite like the idea, to be honest. I always have mixed feelings about the FP1 sessions for a rookie because unless you've had a lot of experience, doing F1 tests is very, very challenging.''
"'I remember my first FP1 I did with Force India in Sao Paulo. I'd only done two days of F1 testing prior to that. I'd never been to Sao Paulo."
"And it really felt that I was thrown in that deep end. There was a lot of scrutiny on those two laps, three laps you get on a brand-new set of tires."
As it stands, it isn't clear whether the Sprint race of the young drivers would be televised because the post-season testing isn't.
However, F1 is a business, and if there was interest from fans and broadcasters, it is tough to imagine the organization would pass on the opportunity to increase its earnings. Russell added:
"But an opportunity for rookie drivers to do a full day of testing, then straight into a sprint race weekend. Yeah, I think it's a good idea."
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