The new format getting closer and closer
After the Australian Grand Prix, the third round of the 2023 world championship which was held at the Albert Park circuit, Formula 1 is experiencing a long break until the end of April. In these three weeks of stop between the Melbourne race and the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku (due to the cancellation of the Chinese Grand Prix from the 2023 F1 calendar), there is still time to discuss important elements that are generating conflicting opinions. Among these, in addition to what happened in the last race at the Albert Park circuit, also that relating to the new race weekend formats.
The official one from Imola
The focus of attention is, in particular, on the structure of the qualifying sessions. Starting from the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, the sixth round of the 2023 Formula One season, which takes place at the Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari, a new regulation will be introduced: the system will remain practically the same, with the already known timed and elimination phases of Q1, Q2 and Q3, but each of them will take place with mandatory tyre compounds.
While in Q1 the cars will take to the track with the hard tyres, in the intermediate session of qualifying they will switch to the medium ones, up to fighting for pole position with the soft tyres. A format that does not fully convince fans, as well as the one linked to the six weekends that include Sprint races.
The almost official one in Baku
The first of these will take place at the next Grand Prix, in Baku. Indeed, on the street circuit of the Azerbaijan capital, the second free practice session on Friday will be cancelled, replaced by a qualifying session dedicated exclusively to determining the starting grid for Sunday’s race. On Saturday morning, on the other hand, another qualifying session will be set up for the single Sprint race, with the latter taking place a few hours later on the same Saturday afternoon, again with the Q1, Q2 and Q3 system, but with slightly reduced times. There is still no official announcement so far, but the agreements between the F1 Commission and the teams means we should expect a definitive announcement in a short time.
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Fred Vasseur’s words
Ferrari team principal Frédéric Vasseur was asked precisely on this matter. During the press conference held in Maranello, the French manager also commented on this new format: “For once all the teams were in agreement – he explained – the format will certainly be more dynamic. One can argue about the late timing, but we had to push for it. I like the new format, I wasn’t a big fan of the Saturday free practice sessions, which were a bit boring for the fans. It was important to find something more dynamic. If you like football, you don’t watch Wednesday training.” – the Ferrari boss concluded.
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