Teams Reject Sunday Qualifying Plan

Formula One team bosses have rejected a proposal to move final qualifying to Sunday mornings to give race fans more entertainment.

"Sunday qualifying is categorically not going to happen. That's one thing they are all agreed on," a team source told Reuters today, before a meeting of the FIA's Formula One commission.

Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone had backed the idea of moving final qualifying from Saturday afternoon to give spectators more for their money after changes introduced this year ended the usual Sunday warm-up session.

Small and big teams alike opposed the move. "If we put qualifying on Sunday morning, there would be even less interest on Saturday," said BMW motorsport director Mario Theissen last weekend. "You want all the speculation on Saturdays."

The main issues for Friday's commission meeting concern the timetable, ways of providing more of a show and testing restrictions.

"The timetable over the whole of the race weekend is being discussed but any outcome is not going to be a million miles from where we are now," said another Formula One source close to the talks. Ecclestone has criticised drivers for ignoring the paying public, saying Formula One needs to do more to satisfy fans.

Formula One changed the qualifying format this year to two sessions, the first on Friday and the second on Saturday, with the drivers allocated one fast lap in each in a pre-determined starting order.

Previously, there was one hour-long session on Saturday, with drivers able to complete four flying laps at a time of their choosing.

One suggestion being looked at is for Friday qualifying to revert to the previous free-for-all format, with the times dictating the starting order for Saturday's one-shot session. "It is being looked at but it has not got total support," said the team source.

Teams also want a common position on testing, with some currently opting for restricted testing in exchange for special sessions on race Fridays, while others run throughout the season.

One suggestion would be for all teams to be allowed four hours on Fridays and be limited to 50 days during the season.

Formula One bosses are also expected to discuss the requirement for top teams to run three cars to ensure full grids in the event of a team going out of business.