Zak Brown suggested introducing mandatory pit stops during sprints – according to the McLaren Racing director, this will make the short Saturday races more spectacular.
There were six sprint events in 2023 and there will be as many next season, but discussions are ongoing about what the optimal schedule for such weekends might be. There are several proposals and Zac Brown did not stay away from this discussion.
He is willing to admit that the current format can and should be improved, but he disagrees with Max Verstappen, for example, who believes the sprint reduces the intrigue of Sunday’s Grand Prix, the main event of each weekend.
“I don’t think the sprints will take away the interest in the Grand Prix, but I think we really need to look at the format itself and that’s what we’re doing now,” Brown said on the Track Limits podcast. – In my opinion, Max Verstappen says that sprint racing in general is not as interesting as it could be. I think we have to do something to revive this race somehow.
This could be a reverse starting order or mandatory pit stops. For example, you can use very soft tires that lose their effectiveness halfway through the race. As far as I’m concerned, mandatory pit stops could be a good solution. If we had special Super Soft tires that wear out half the distance, then the teams and drivers would have to make a decision about a pit stop in this situation.
It seems to me that this is a good way to turn the sprint into a kind of mini Grand Prix, because now the tactics factor has no influence on the course of Saturday’s races. I think pit stops would make these races more interesting.”
Source: F1 News
I am Christopher Clyde, an experienced journalist and content writer with a passion for sports. I have been writing about Formula 1 news for the past five years and am currently employed as an author at athletistic.com, one of the top sports websites in the US.
