Former world champion Prost sees no need to change F1

F1 has faced a barrage of complaints this year - from both competitors and fans - that its quest to deliver entertainment has gone too far.

Prost, who is in Monaco this weekend in his role as an ambassador for Renault, thinks it is too easy for people to hit out at the way races are playing out rather than stepping back and looking at the positives.

"At the end of the day, you must remember that people criticised a lot when one driver made the pole position, led the race and then nothing happened," said the former world champion in an interview with AUTOSPORT.

"You want it somewhere in the middle and I think the compromise today is not bad - because at least we have a show.

"We have a long season, with a lot of uncertainty - and that is the most important for F1."

Prost believes that the change to new 1.6-litre V6 turbo engines next year will also be a boost to F1, in providing another talking point for fans.

"If you have this new technology, it means you have something to sell also that is different to today," he explained. "And if you still have the show, that's even better.

"I don't like to criticise too much. I think it's very difficult. I was many times in commissions with the FIA and you know how difficult it is, especially when you are talking about money.

"If you want to reduce spending it's very difficult to find the right things. So I don't want to criticise too much."

Prost, famously nicknamed 'the Professor' for the clever strategic approach he took to racing, does doubt that he would have been able to race that way in the current F1.

"I don't know if I could do the same job," he said. "I don't think you can compare the tyres today to the tyres in my period.

"Even if you had only one manufacturer, to have more or less what we had in the 80s you would have to have two or three choices of compound and then you do what you want. With no obligation to stop.

"Now you only start the race with the tyres you qualify with, and that's it. Even if you want to put hard tyres on the left and soft on the right you cannot. It's different today."