Williams boss James Vowles urged Formulation 1 to undertake a two-day grand prix weekend format, which might subsequently end in extra venues being added to the 24-round calendar.
The format of a race weekend has been a sizzling subject lately after F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali underlined the necessity for the championship to maintain exploring a unique construction.
Shortening the 300km grand prix was talked about, as was the thought of reverse grids, however maybe the principle subject of dialog was the variety of dash races every season.
There might be six dash contests within the 2026 marketing campaign, the identical as this yr, with Shanghai, Miami, Montreal, Silverstone, Zandvoort and Singapore all set to host a shortened Saturday race subsequent season.
Singapore was a shock inclusion given how laborious it’s to overhaul across the slim avenue circuit in order that, plus what number of sprints there ought to be, was raised within the crew principal press convention forward of this weekend’s Singapore Grand Prix.
Vowels was within the session and as an alternative of tackling dash races, he reckons the larger concern is that there are three observe outings throughout a daily grand prix weekend.
He stated: “I am not apprehensive about Singapore, I believe what we see on dash race weekends is the numbers go up, the audiences go up, so it’s typically a success.
“I am extra somebody that want to debate whether or not we go to two-day weekends, Saturday, Sunday.
Carlos Sainz, Williams FW47
Picture by: Shameem Fahath / Motorsport Community
“I’d simply scale back the quantity of free observe and make it a spectacle however by doing that, and giving again 24 days to the groups, really you can do a number of extra race weekends in case you wished.
“So, barely totally different on the market suggestion however I believe six sprints for me is about the fitting quantity, I frankly do not care the place they’re, it is completely effective being right here.”
F1 has in actual fact trialled two-day weekends lately, because the collection did it on the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix through the COVID-affected 2020 marketing campaign. That entailed a 90-minute observe session on the Saturday morning in Imola earlier than qualifying later that day and the grand prix on the Sunday.
Though the opposite crew principals didn’t add to Vowles’ feedback within the session, they did supply their very own views on the dash calendar and Singapore, specifically, being on subsequent yr’s one.
Aston Martin’s Andy Cowell reckons the regulation overhaul that is because of debut subsequent yr might really make the Singapore dash an thrilling one.
“It is going to be fascinating to see what the overtaking is like subsequent yr with the brand new laws,” he stated. “So we might nicely see extra overtaking and so due to this fact Singapore being chosen is not an issue, the followers love dash race weekends and all of us work for the followers.
Toto Wolff, Govt Director of Mercedes AMG F1 Staff James Vowles, Staff Principal of Williams and Andy Cowell, Staff Principal and Group CEO at Aston Martin F1 Staff within the Staff Principals Press Convention
Picture by: Mark Sutton / Formulation 1 through Getty Photos
“I due to this fact help it and precisely the identical as Steve, possibly you can do extra however 24 is likely to be a push too far.”
That ‘Steve’ he talked about was Steve Nielsen, who lately joined Alpine after stints at Caterham, Toro Rosso, Williams and the FIA.
Nielsen has modified his opinion on dash races since seeing them in motion, a lot in order that he thinks there ought to be extra on the calendar.
“I believe dash races have been factor,” he stated. “Perhaps I am a lone voice on the sofa right here, however I believe dash races have been factor and I say that as any individual who to start with was not that enthusiastic.
“I want to see extra of them and I believe after we do races now, the place we’ve got three free observe classes, it appears very lengthy and I believe it might be good for the blokes within the grandstands to have, nicely guys and women relatively, to have extra stuff to have a look at.
“So I’d be an advocate of getting extra dash races and I am glad there’s one in Singapore. I believe there is a glad type of quantity, I am unsure what it’s, better than six, lower than 24 however yeah, it would not work in all places however I believe we are able to positively do greater than we do.”
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