Ioverno: The sprint weekend in Shanghai is a challenge for everyone

Before the Chinese Grand Prix, Ferrari sporting director Diego Ioverno spoke about a new weekend format with a Saturday sprint…

Q: A new sprint weekend format debuts in China. How will this change your approach?
Diego Ioverno: Compared to last year, the order of the sessions has changed, making it clearer to the audience. Now we will do one practice and qualifying for the sprint on Friday, and the sprint itself on Saturday and qualifying for the race on Sunday.

The “closed park” rules have also changed, which are now divided into two periods, allowing teams to repair cars and modify them if necessary. Each action must be clearly thought out, taking into account that at the start of the next session we will again enter the “closed park” mode.

In the event of chassis damage or reliability issues, it is now possible to request replacement parts between the sprint and qualifying, even if these sessions take place on the same day. But you must be prepared for this and have the necessary components.

Question: Formula 1 returns to Shanghai after a five-year break; modern ground effect cars will race on the Chinese track for the first time. Will it be difficult to get comfortable with just one workout?
Diego Ioverno: Spending a sprint weekend in Shanghai is a challenge for everyone. Riders, teams, FIA and organizers have just one session to identify difficulties and take action before sprint qualifying begins. Preparation in advance and the ability to respond quickly will be critical.

Question: What are the characteristics of this track, which ones stand out the most?
Diego Ioverno: It is difficult to predict how the new cars will behave on this track, how the racers will handle them.

The configuration is very difficult, with many technical sections. The first three corners of the first sector were very difficult for previous generation cars, we can assume that they will be even more difficult for current cars.

Equally important is the condition of the asphalt, the presence of bumps and irregularities that can negatively affect the behavior of ground effect cars.