Auto Sport
F1 Considers Reverse Starting Grid For Spirit Racing
Formula 1 continues to tinker with the sprint racing phenomenon. Once again, there are changes on the table, including an inverted starting lineup.
Max Verstappen is probably tired of it, but again, the race weekends seem to be being tinkered with. Specifically, it concerns the sprint race weekends, of which the three-time world champion is already such a fan. According to Autosport, various plans were discussed in Abu Dhabi to do something different next year.
The most striking idea is to work with an inverted starting position. This means that there is qualifying and that the person with the pole position starts at the back, followed by the one with the second fastest time, etc., and then the slowest one at the very front. How to avoid deliberately not qualifying well is probably the biggest issue. However, you can imagine that it would make things more spectacular if, for example, Verstappen had to come forward from the very back. Incidentally, a condition for this reverse starting grid would be that no more championship points are awarded for the sprint race. An inverted starting lineup for only the top 10 is also an option.
There is also discussion about organizing the sprint race weekend differently. Now qualifying for the GP took place yesterday, sprint qualifying and the sprint race today, and then the GP on Sunday. It is not yet entirely clear what exactly this would be an advantage of. Various proposals will be submitted to the teams at the beginning of 2024, and it will probably become clear whether anything will change and what exactly.
