Fernando Alonso Criticizes F1 Sprint Format at GP

Fernando Alonso voiced his concerns about the F1 Sprint format’s impact on racing and strategy, especially after the Chinese Grand Prix.

Fernando Alonso expressed frustration with the Sprint format after the Chinese Grand Prix. Penalized following contact, the Aston Martin F1 driver was also upset about ruining tires that could have been useful during the qualifying session.

“In FP1, it’s a game about who can drive the least and use fewer sets of tires,” lamented Alonso, annoyed that on-track battles are penalized. “It’s unfortunate for the fans. And then the Sprint, if they want it for the spectacle and overtaking, and you don’t let them race, it’s better not to race at all.”

The Spaniard recently threatened not to participate in the next Sprint in Miami, but he later retracted his statement, though he remained frustrated: “Ideally, we wouldn’t run in FP1 to keep all tires alive and wouldn’t run the Sprint to save penalty points on our licenses.”

“It’s clear we won’t do that because we need to learn something about the car in Miami. But we must keep thinking; the Sprint needs further refinement.”

George Russell enjoys how the Sprint weekends are structured in 2024, but he also calls for a greater tire allocation: “I like this format. I think the only thing that could be improved is changing the tire rule for practice.”

“Perhaps giving everyone the same set of tires or the same number of tires for practice, as it shouldn’t affect the rest of your weekend based on what you do in practice. That’s the only thing I think, but otherwise, I’m quite happy with what we’ve done.”