Formula 1 is moving towards increasing the number of Sprint races from 2027, with the current six-event format potentially expanding to nine or even 10 weekends. Yet while F1 President and CEO Stefano Domenicali believes the shorter races are helping to attract fans and create more meaningful action across a Grand Prix weekend, the existing format raises important questions from both a sporting and practical perspective.
The direction appears increasingly clear. Formula 1 wants more competitive sessions and fewer periods perceived by the wider audience as downtime, and plans to expand the number of F1 Sprint races from 2027 fit perfectly within that strategy. But if the Sprint concept is going to become an increasingly important part of Formula 1, perhaps the more important question is whether the format itself should also be redesigned.
Why Formula 1 wants more Sprint races in 2027
For several years, Liberty Media has been pushing Formula 1 towards becoming an increasingly exciting, engaging product with fewer apparent dead periods. The clear objective is to attract a broader mainstream audience while increasing attendance at circuits, which has already grown enormously, and offering sessions capable of producing meaningful sporting action throughout the weekend.
That approach inevitably places pressure on sessions that can appear uneventful to casual viewers. However, those same periods can be extremely valuable to teams, drivers and tyre specialists because they provide time to understand the circuit, optimise car setup and evaluate tyre behaviour before qualifying and the race.
The present season features six Sprint events across what was originally a 24-round 2026 Formula 1 calendar, although the total could be reduced to 23 because of the critical situation in the Middle East resulting from the conflict between Iran and the United States.
The future is expected to look different. The number of Sprint weekends is likely to increase from six to nine or 10, meaning that more than a third of the season could use a format consisting of only one free practice session, Sprint Qualifying to determine the Sprint grid, the Sprint itself, conventional qualifying on Saturday and the Grand Prix on Sunday.
That leaves Friday’s sole practice session as the only period during which teams can work exclusively on their cars without an immediate competitive result at stake. The contrast with a standard 2026 F1 Sprint weekend illustrates just how compressed the preparation process becomes.
Stefano Domenicali explains why F1 believes the Sprint strategy works
Stefano Domenicali recently discussed both the present and future of Formula 1 Sprint races with Sky Sports UK.
“If you remember, at the beginning people were always sceptical about what we were doing, and I think we had a duty to be courageous and think outside the box,” Stefano Domenicali said.
“I think you can see the effect they have had. With the number of people we had on Friday at Silverstone, if you did not offer something that had a real impact, it would be wrong. I think this is the way forward and we are working to announce a higher number for the future, which will be communicated very soon, together with the publication of the calendar.”
The basic concept is understandable. If Formula 1 wants to attract a more general audience, it is logical to attempt to provide as many exciting moments as possible, keeping viewers engaged whether they are watching on television, smartphones or tablets, or sitting in the grandstands at the circuit.
In a society where news can feel outdated within seconds and endless scrolling dominates social media consumption, sessions perceived as transitional or uneventful can become an enemy of audience engagement.
Does the current Sprint format lose its impact too quickly?
The problem is that this same effect can apply to the Sprint itself. Saturday morning’s short race can be almost completely overshadowed only a few hours later by qualifying, the session that establishes the starting grid for Sunday’s Grand Prix – still the main event of the weekend.
The impact generated by the Sprint therefore tends to be short-lived. Spectators quickly turn their attention towards the anticipation and excitement surrounding Saturday afternoon qualifying, and a similar impression can sometimes be seen among the drivers themselves.
It is noticeable that many Sprint winners climb out of their cars without celebrating the victory with anything approaching the enthusiasm normally associated with winning a Grand Prix.
If even the drivers appear to regard winning a Sprint, despite the World Championship points available, as something that does not require the same level of celebration as a conventional victory, there is a risk of diminishing the event in the eyes of the audience as well. If Formula 1 genuinely believes in the Sprint product, it is reasonable to ask whether more should be done to give the race greater sporting and emotional significance.
At present, the Sprint can sometimes feel like additional content inserted into the weekend rather than an event with truly substantial sporting importance of its own. What exactly is the Sprint today? In practical terms, it replaces two sessions – including Friday afternoon’s Sprint Qualifying – that may appear less important to the public but carry considerable value for teams and drivers.
Formula 1 is competing for fans’ free time, not just against other sports
Speaking to the media shortly before the current summer break, Stefano Domenicali also explained the broader objective behind Formula 1’s strategy.
“We have to make sure that anyone coming to the circuit has an extraordinary experience. And the numbers are indisputable: tickets sold are an objective figure. People want to be there in person, whether that means sitting in the grandstands or enjoying the different hospitality experiences offered through the Paddock Club. Of course there are different products, with different prices and services, but the fact is that events are sold out because people want to be there and experience something unique.”
Stefano Domenicali then highlighted an important part of Formula 1’s commercial thinking.
“Today, however, the most important thing to remember is that we are not competing with other sports. We are competing with everything a person can choose to do in their free time: going to the theatre, the cinema, a concert or enjoying any other kind of experience.”
“For this reason, it is essential to offer content and an experience that justify the cost of the ticket. It has to be something better than the alternatives, otherwise people will choose something else. And that is exactly what is happening,” Stefano Domenicali said.
That philosophy helps explain why Sprint races are expected to increase and why they will probably continue to become more common. Formula 1 is also expected to reveal more about its plans alongside the publication of the 2027 F1 calendar.
More Sprint races could also carry long-term risks
Every action, however, can have a reaction, and those consequences should be considered not only in the short term but also over the medium and long term.
The current Formula 1 regulations have already generated some visible dissatisfaction among long-standing fans, the audience that has traditionally formed the championship’s core support. Seeing drivers spend more time managing energy rather than fighting at the absolute limit represents a radical change that has been difficult for some followers who have watched Grands Prix for decades to accept.
The issue has become particularly relevant in 2026, when energy use has had a major influence on how drivers approach racing. Lewis Hamilton has explained how energy management has changed the wheel-to-wheel challenge under the current rules, highlighting the tension between managing the car’s systems and the kind of direct racing drivers traditionally enjoy.
The introduction of Sprint races several years ago created another area of uncertainty among parts of the established fanbase. Formula 1 is currently experiencing an extraordinary period of popularity, as Stefano Domenicali has emphasised, but it would be unrealistic to assume that such growth can continue indefinitely.
A regulatory change that moves in the wrong direction relative to what the championship is trying to achieve could quickly damage that momentum. At that point, the established fanbase becomes even more important. If those supporters do not feel considered, Formula 1 risks creating a much deeper problem than might initially appear.
Credibility can take years to build and only a moment to lose.
Could more Sprint races increase the strain on teams and drivers?
The workload faced by those working inside Formula 1 should not be overlooked either. Adding 10 shorter races to 24 Sunday Grands Prix would create a total of 34 races during a season. If the trend continued until every weekend featured both a Sprint and a Grand Prix, Formula 1 would effectively stage 48 races across the year.
That would place additional demands on a large proportion of team personnel and could increase the physical and psychological strain of an already exceptionally long season.
The drivers must also be considered. Increasing the number of races could create physical and mental drawbacks and, potentially, contribute to shorter careers at the highest level.
Many Formula 1 drivers possess an extraordinary passion for competition. But repeatedly asking them to sustain an enormous level of effort over one, two, five or 10 years could significantly alter how the sport’s leading figures perceive the demands being placed upon them. Ultimately, these are competitors who accept substantial risks whenever they race.
Is it really worth risking the loss of champions and spectacular drivers simply because the calendar offers too little time to recover, work on car setup or refine driving lines?
Is having more individually exciting sessions truly more valuable than having drivers such as Max Verstappen, Kimi Antonelli, Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri competing at the highest level for 15 years?
The spectacle comes from the people fighting on the circuit, from overtaking moves, strategic choices and their consequences. Increasing the number of occasions on which those things can potentially happen does not automatically solve the equation that more decisive sessions equal more entertainment. Over the medium and long term, it could instead become a double-edged sword.
The question is whether Formula 1 is genuinely prepared to accept that risk – and at what cost.
A possible alternative: replace Free Practice 3 instead
Criticising a format is easy. It is more useful to consider a possible alternative. Looking at the structure of a conventional Formula 1 weekend, one session stands out as the most obvious candidate for change: Free Practice 3.
The direction taken with Sprint races appears clear. Their number is expected to increase next year and, barring a major change of strategy, probably continue rising in future seasons. Formula 1 may never completely adopt the MotoGP approach of holding a Sprint on Saturday and a full-length race every Sunday, but Liberty Media’s objective of creating more meaningful competitive sessions is clear.
Stefano Domenicali reinforced that position during a recent Liberty Media investor meeting.
“Our Sprint format continues to drive greater Friday attendance and stronger daily attendance throughout the race weekend … we expect to expand the number of Sprints for next year and provide further details shortly. We want to do it in the right way because, of course, this also allows us to make sure scarcity remains a value. If, commercially speaking, we went everywhere, it is clear that it would no longer have the same value,” Stefano Domenicali said.
Formula 1’s commercial rights holder has therefore established a clear direction: create as much engaging action as possible to encourage spectators to attend not only Sunday’s Grand Prix but the preceding days as well. Stefano Domenicali has previously discussed the perceived limitations of traditional practice sessions while explaining why Formula 1 sees more Sprint weekends as attractive.
Why FP3 may be the most expendable practice session
When examining the traditional Formula 1 weekend, Free Practice 3 is arguably the weakest point from an entertainment perspective.
Free Practice 1 and Free Practice 2 allow teams to prepare for qualifying and the race by working on car setup and tyre strategies. The final practice session, however, is often held at a time of day significantly different from qualifying and the Grand Prix, sometimes with noticeably different track conditions.
That does not make FP3 useless – it certainly is not – but it could reasonably be viewed as more expendable than Friday afternoon’s second practice session.
If Formula 1 truly wants to give the Sprint greater importance, or eventually make the short race a permanent element of Grand Prix weekends, another possibility would be to move conventional qualifying to early Saturday afternoon and conclude the second day of track action with the Sprint.
Under that structure, the short race would become Saturday’s main event. The discussion, analysis and driver comments that follow the day’s action would then revolve around 100 kilometres of actual racing instead of immediately shifting towards another, more important session.
Could qualifying determine the grid for both races?
Such a change would inevitably reduce some of the spotlight currently placed on qualifying. However, qualifying could potentially determine the starting grids for both races.
The result would be a Saturday containing two highly significant sessions while still allowing teams to use Friday for the detailed work required to optimise their cars. At the same time, the Sprint would gain greater visibility rather than being squeezed between its own qualifying session and conventional Grand Prix qualifying.
The idea becomes particularly relevant when looking at real Sprint weekends such as the 2026 Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort, where the compressed format leaves teams with only one conventional practice session before competitive action begins.
This proposal is not presented with any claim that it represents the definitive solution. It simply takes Liberty Media’s stated objectives into account and asks whether there may be a better compromise.
Giving teams more meaningful preparation time on Friday while making the Sprint the genuine centrepiece of Saturday could make Sprint weekends easier to accept for spectators, particularly long-standing Formula 1 followers. At the same time, it could give the short race greater sporting and media importance rather than simply increasing the number of Sprint events without addressing the weaknesses of the format itself.
If Formula 1 is committed to making Sprint races a bigger part of its future, increasing their quantity may only be half of the discussion. Finding a format that gives those races a clearer identity, greater sporting value and a more sustainable place within the Grand Prix weekend could ultimately matter just as much.
Leave a Reply