Formula 1 revealed schedule for First ever Sprint Qualifying on Friday. The first of three 2021 events with the brand-new Sprint Qualifying weekend format will be the British Grand Prix at Silverstone on July 16-18.
The revised schedule will see Free Practice 1 and Qualifying on Friday, with Free Practice 2 and Sprint Qualifying on Saturday, and the Grand Prix itself on Sunday, as usual.
British Grand Prix weekend schedule:
FRIDAY
FP1: 14:30-15:30
Qualifying: 18:00-19:00
SATURDAY
FP2: 12:00-13:00
Sprint Qualifying: 16:30-17:00
SUNDAY
Race: 15:00
*all times local
What is Sprint Qualifying?
Sprint Qualifying will be a race run over 100km and lasting around 25-30 minutes. It is designed to provide a short and fast-paced racing spectacle – similar to a Twenty20 cricket match – with drivers racing flat-out from start to finish without the need to pit.
Friday Qualifying session will determine the starting grid for Saturday’s Sprint Qualifying.
Will there be a Points for Sprint Qualifying Winners ?
Points will be awarded to the top three finishers, three for the winner down to one point for third.
There won’t be a podium ceremony, as that honour will remain the privilege of the top three in Sunday’s Grand Prix, however the winner will get a trophy in Parc Ferme, presented in a similar manner to the tyre the pole-sitter currently from F1’s tyre supplier Pirelli after qualifying now.
The finishing order of the race will define the grid for Sunday’s showpiece event – the Grand Prix, where the traditional format will remain unchanged.
What should fans expect from the new format ?
The format is designed to increase the on-track action and engage fans in new and innovative way. It also strikes the right balance of rewarding drivers and teams on merit while also giving others the chance to battle their way through the field on Saturday to increase their race chances on Sunday.
The drivers have been extremely positive about Sprint Qualifying, saying it will be ‘intense’ and that fans will see cars being ‘pushed to the max’. Two further sprint qualifying race weekends will follow in 2021, with the second expected to be in Italy and the third at a flyaway event.
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[…] event and it will be an incredible weekend with hundreds of thousands of fans being there to see our first ever Sprint event on the Saturday and the main event on Sunday. […]