Sky Sports F1 pundits assess whether more sprint weekends and world championship points are needed F1 News

With talks of more world championship points and more sprint weekends in Formula 1, the Sky Sports F1 team have had their say on possible rule changes.

At last week’s F1 Commission meeting, the sport’s chiefs and teams discussed the idea of ​​dropping the final points-scoring position from 10th to 12th.

With a clear gap currently between the top five teams of Red Bull, Ferrari, McLaren, Mercedes and Aston Martin, the bottom five teams will find it extremely difficult to score points.

RB has seven points and Haas has five, while Williams, Alpine and Sauber have yet to claim any, a pointless trio dictated by their highest non-point scoring finishes.

With the top 10 expected to be largely frozen by the top five teams, the addition of 11th and 12th points is thought to provide separation at the bottom of the constructors’ standings.

Although there are no points on offer, there will be more entertaining racing for places outside the top 10 across the races, which makes a lot of sense from the change.

However, traditionalists may argue that the value of the points is being reduced, with only the top six finishers scoring again in 2002 and their availability gradually increasing.

Given the prospect of a major reset to the pecking order when new regulations are introduced in 2026, there is also an argument that the change will be a knee-jerk reaction.

Should more drivers be awarded points?

Martin Brundle – No: “I think we run the risk of losing that risk, over the decades we’ve seen the desperation to get points. I’ve come from a time in the top six, so my debut to score a point like I did, it’s just something to be desired, so we scored 39 cars.

“If we’re expanding the points system, where do I think it ends up? We drop it to 12, then 15, then let’s all give points so that the manufacturer or the team or the sponsor is satisfied. Are teams still satisfied if they’re ranked 11th and 12th anyway, so they have no I am totally against adding points.

David Croft – Yes: “I don’t think giving marks for class 11 and 12 is enough. I want to reduce the marks to 20 if you finish. Some people have approached me on social media saying, ‘It’s like a modern school. Turn around. For an egg and a spoon, you get a prize!’ No, it’s a very simple way to explain why a driver is in a certain position in the championship, instead he has two 13th places and a 14th place, and the other guy has one 13th place and two 14th places.

“No, just have the points and then you reward consistency during the season, which is a big part of F1. You explain it easily to the fans, you get better battles because the points are at stake, and you have a DNF, that counts more against you.”

Damon Hill – Yes: “I think the Crafty points go back after you finish. It gives the drivers that extra motivation. So it can go down to 19th like a wooden spoon.

“Constructors get prize money even if you come last, so the points are almost next to the points! So I’m all for the idea. But when we compare drivers’ records we have to remember the changes and weigh that up. Otherwise Jim Clark would have run too.”

Bernie Collins – No: “I don’t think we should add more points because at the minute, teams are already rewarded if two or three teams don’t score points in their final position, so it doesn’t affect their championship final position.

“It means the fight for their final positions on the grid will be quite a tough fight, with big risk/reward for the final five teams who aren’t as quick as the top five teams. I’ll leave the points as they are. Even if most cars finish, it matters more and when someone gets a point like Williams got their first point of the season a few years ago. It is more celebrated.”

Anthony Davidson – Yes: “I’m not in favor of adding more points from top to bottom but I always feel that the efforts of drivers in non-competitive cars with more points further down the field deserve to be rewarded.

“The only problem is that it further distorts the comparison of past achievements of previous drivers and teams.”

Why might there be more sprints in 2025?

Another thing to be sure to take in the paddock at the Miami Grand Prix is ​​the possibility of adding more sprint weekends in 2025.

F1 finally seems to have found a format for the weekend that both teams and drivers are happy with, with a rearranged race order that enabled the introduction of two separate Parc Ferme sessions.

This gives engineers the opportunity to make setup changes after sprint events, making them irrelevant for most of the weekend as previously formatted.

There are six sprints on the 2024 calendar, but with the extra competitive sessions providing a good show, F1 president Stefano Domenicali has admitted he is interested in adding more.

Should there be more sprints?

Martin Brundle – Yes: “I want more sprints. You can’t have sprints in every race, but I want more because as a spectator at the weekend, for China, every day something important happens.

“I think it works, not everywhere, but it works. So, why not? This format works, and I think sprint sessions are always better than the practice sessions they replace. Not every weekend, not everywhere, but I prefer more than less.”

Damon Hill – Yes: “I liked the new format in China. Yes it is for more sprints. But I think they should bring back the morning practice. It gives more excitement and danger on Sunday, and something extra for the passionate fans. Track or turn on their television beforehand.”

David Croft – Yes: “If you’re going to have more sprint races, have a sprint world championship. Don’t make it part of the grand prix championship for me, but I’ve said that for a while.”

Bernie Collins – Not sure: “We’ve only had one of these new formats of the sprint but I think it’s been quite successful because it leaves the general qualifying and the race intact, which suits a lot of people in terms of viewing on Saturday afternoon and Sunday afternoon. .

“So I’m open to adding more sprints because the teams go into at least the first sprint qualifying and the first sprint with a lot less information, so it’s more exciting than P2 and P3. But, we only saw one race weekend. That was in China, which was unusual anyway with the calendar back.”

Anthony Davidson – Yes: “Now that the format of the sprint weekends has changed, I’m more inclined to see more of them, because I think it’s still in keeping with the spirit of F1.

“This format gives engineers plenty of time to work with setup/development over the course of the weekend and gives fans more competitive sessions to watch.”

Sky Sports F1’s Live Miami GP Schedule

Thursday May 2
6.30 pm: Drivers press conference

Friday May 3
3pm: F1 Academy Practice 1
5pm: Miami GP Practice One (Session starts at 5.30pm)
8.20pm: F1 Academy Practice 2
9pm: Miami GP Sprint Qualifying (Session starts at 9:30pm)

Saturday May 4
3.25pm: F1 Academy Qualifying
4pm: Miami GP Sprint (race starts at 5pm)
6.30pm: Ted’s Sprint Notebook
7.05pm: F1 Academy Race 1
8pm: Miami GP qualifying build-up
9pm: Miami GP Qualifying
11pm: Ted’s qualifying notebook

Sunday May 5
6.05pm: F1 Academy Race 2
7.30pm: Grand Prix Sunday Miami GP build-up
9pm: Miami Grand Prix
11pm: Checkered flag: Miami GP reaction
Midnight: Ted’s Notebook

Switch early alarms for prime-time evening viewing on Sky Sports F1 after Formula 1 visits the USA for the first time in 2024 in the next three visits, including this weekend’s Miami GP. Steam every F1 race and more with a Sports Month membership now – no contract, cancel anytime

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