Between the racing lines | Formula 1 is complicated, confusing and constantly changing. This story is part of our guide to help any fan – no matter how long they’ve been watching the sport or how they discovered it – navigate the pinnacle of motorsport.
Sprint racing is back, Formula 1 fans.
The terms used in this sport sometimes seem complex — parc ferme, autoclaves, degradation, ECU, DRS, HANS, etc. — but this is a rare case where you can guess the meaning simply from the name. A sprint race is a wild ride over a third of the normal racing distance in which the top eight finishers score about a third of the points they would in a normal grand prix.
As in 2023, six race weekends will feature sprints this season. China and Miami will make their sprint debut while Austria, Qatar, Austin and Brazil remain on the roster for 2024.
However, the F1 Commission and the World Motor Sport Council have approved changes to the format. The schedule still includes a practice session, two qualifying sessions, a sprint race and a grand prix for the weekend, similar to last year, but with minor adjustments to the timing of each session.
Here’s how it all goes.
History and calendar of F1 sprint races
F1 introduced sprint races in 2021 in a bid to bring more spectacle to race weekends with a format that would see drivers go hard from the lights all the way to the checkered flag. After hosting three sprint weekends in 2021 and 2022, this number has doubled to six for 2023 and 2024.
The sport introduced something new to the format in 2023: the “Sprint Shootout”. In previous years, qualifying took place on the Friday before the Saturday sprint, and the order of finish of the sprint determined the Sunday starting grid. This format included two practice sessions, one on Friday and one on Saturday. Last year, a Friday qualifying session set the GP order, and the Saturday sprint race had its own qualifying session on Saturday. The Sprint Shootout replaced the Saturday practice session and followed a standard qualifying format, with shorter times.
Further changes have been made for 2024. The Sprint Shootout is now known as Sprint Qualifying and is moved from Saturday to Friday, after the first practice session. The sprint qualifying session will begin between 2.5 and 3.5 hours after the end of the first practice sessions.
Sprint qualification logistics
Participants | Time | Tires | |
---|---|---|---|
Sprint qualifying 1 |
The 20 drivers, the last 5 eliminated |
12 minutes |
AVERAGE |
Sprint 2 qualifying |
15 drivers remaining, last 5 eliminated |
10 minutes |
AVERAGE |
Sprint 3 qualifying |
10 pilots remaining |
8 minutes |
Soft |
The 62-mile (100 km) sprint race will take place on Saturday, followed by the Grand Prix qualifying session. Qualifying will begin between three and four hours after the end of the sprint race.
The evolving schedule for the F1 sprint weekend
2024 | 2023 | 2021-2022 | |
---|---|---|---|
Friday |
FP1, Sprint qualifications |
FP1, GP qualifications |
FP1, Sprint qualifications |
SATURDAY |
Sprint race, GP qualifications |
Sprint qualifications, sprint race |
FP2, Sprint race (grid established by order of finish for GP) |
Sunday |
General practitioner |
General practitioner |
General practitioner |
What is the impact of grid penalties on the weekend?
There are still penalties on the grid to be aware of when it comes time for these weekends. Here’s how and when these will apply:
- Penalties for first practice and Saturday’s qualifying grid apply to Sunday’s grand prix
- Penalties on the sprint qualifying grid apply to the sprint race
- Sprint race grid penalties apply to grand prix
- Powertrain penalties will apply for the grand prix, unless it is also a parc ferme infraction, in which case it will be a pit lane start. This applies to both the sprint and the grand prix.
2024 F1 sprint race calendar
This is an updated version of a story originally published in April 2023.
(Main image: Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images; design: John Bradford/Athleticism)