Formula One to consider changing qualifying to a sprint race. The qualification process was last changed during Bernie Ecclestone's reign in 2016.

Formula 1’s most recent proposals to revamp the weekend schedule include ideas such as a Saturday sprint event, according to leading German automobile magazine Auto Motor und Spor, who informs that Formula One chiefs are taking into consideration the possbility of changing qualifying format to a sprint race in order to attract a wider audience and create more interest from the general public.

American mass media company Liberty Media, bought Formula One auto racing for $4.6 billion in January 2017, have proposed a 100km sprint race on Saturday with no fuel or tyre limitations to determine the grid for the main event on Sunday, thus giving drivers the ability to race full throttle. Initially, there was a suggestion of creating a reverse grid but that has since been abandoned because of fears that the racing drama would be too artificially created.

The qualification process was last changed during Bernie Ecclestone’s reign in 2016, where the controversial elimination system was promptly scrapped after just one race. The current system sees five drivers eliminated in Q1 and Q2 respectively, before a top-10 shoot-out follows in the final part of the qualifying session. However, ahead of the release of the new 2021 blueprint on Friday, Liberty Media have surveyed each F1 team in order to get their thoughts on how qualifying should be determined in the future.

There are also potential plans to change FP1 and FP2 to two one-hour sessions on Friday and create time for fans to get a closer look at the cars, making the entry fee a little more value for money.