“What is the reason for inventing new things all the time? In football, the rules don’t change, nor in other sports,” says Max.
The three-time champion, despite winning the sprint in Qatar, believes that this competition format “should disappear” from the calendar
The São Paulo Grand Prix, in Brazil, It recovers the sprint weekend format, with a single free session and classification on Friday, Saturday dedicated exclusively to the sprint (qualifying and race) and Sunday with the main race. It will be the sixth and last time this season. And also the time to take stock of an experimental competition system that has not quite come together and that in 2024 will change again. The three-time champion Max Verstappen is one of the most critical drivers and advocates for its elimination.
It is still curious when it comes to driver who has won the most sprint races (6) since F1 joined the calendar (in three grand prix to start, which increased to six this year). And also knowing that Max mathematically secured his third world title on Saturday in Qatar, in the sprint.
Verstappen considers that the sprint “should disappear” of the Formula 1 map and argues: “On a traditional weekend, all the teams could configure their cars normally. What happened to Hamilton and Leclerc, when they were disqualified in Austin, would not have happened in a normal grand prix These things just happen“n when there is a sprint and everything is done in a hurry between Free Practice 1 and qualifying”he emphasizes.
Despite his youth (26), Max has a conservative mentality and does not agree with the new rule change that Formula 1 is preparing from 2026. “Why do you have to constantly try to invent something? I think our product works if we make sure the cars are competitive and the rules remain the same for a long time.. What is the reason for inventing new things all the time? It seems a bit crazy to me to have to invent something. The rules don’t change in football, nor in other sports. It’s been that way for 100 years,” he recalls.
Verstappen He does not understand that the managers of the World Championship, the American company Liberty and the FIA, are in a constant process of experimentation to enhance the spectacle of Formula 1: “Why do we suddenly have to invent other things to try to make the championship more entertaining? “It’s quite simple. I think if you have good races with cars that are close to each other, then you don’t need sprint weekends,” he insists.