How Baku’s sprint format change exposed F1’s biggest fault

OPINION: A drab Azerbaijan Grand Prix failed to deliver the excitement anticipated from F1's first sprint event of 2023. But while there were multiple contributing factors, the biggest underlying point is one that should concern series bosses

Formula 1 has rarely had such a frenetic weekend as that in Baku, as the new sprint format left little down time for teams. The intensity of it all, and the extra headaches and stress faced by mechanics and drivers, prompted plenty of debate among fans and paddock figures about whether or not this new era of in-your-face entertainment was the right thing to do.

But while opinions still remain divided (and perhaps will be forever) over sprint races being a part of F1 at all, what the Azerbaijan Grand Prix weekend did expose was something that almost everyone agrees on: the racing isn’t that good right now. There was a certain irony that, amid all the worries of two qualifying sessions and a Saturday sprint taking away some of the shine of the main race, it was the actual grand prix that was the worst part of the entire weekend.

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Author Jonathan Noble

Jonathan Noble is Motorsport.com’s Formula 1 editor. Having graduated from University of Sussex Jonathan worked for sports news agency Collings Sports reporting on F1, F3, touring cars and other sports, with articles appearing in The Daily Telegraph, The Independent, Reuters, Autosport and other publications. In 1999 he moved to Haymarket Publishing to become a senior editor at Autosport Special Projects, and one year later he became Autosport’s grand prix editor. In 2015 he moved to Motorsport Network, becoming the F1 editor for Motorsport.com. He is also a member of the Guild of Motoring Writers, and sits on the FIA Media Council.