George Russell is against the new format that has been introduced to the pinnacle of motorsports recently as Formula 1’s solution to more entertainment for viewers. The new format includes a multiple-race and qualifying system over the weekends, compared to the normal sessions on Saturday and Sunday.
The Sprint racing format was supposed to be much more entertaining for fans of the sport but drivers and fans have criticized it heavily for the chaos it ensures. The recent world champion, Max Verstappen, is among the biggest critics of the format and has always been against it.
George Russell weighs in on sprint race changes
George Russell has spoken up about the changes in the new format of racing, as he isn’t convinced about the quality of races offered. Formula 1 will bringing in new modifications to Sprint weekend from 2024 season in order to provide a better experience.
Formula 1 is about to move the Sprint Shootout to Friday and restore qualifying for the main race to its original schedule on Saturday. Its quite clear that by introducing a shorter format of racing, the FIA wanted to increase the racing action. But George Russell doesn’t agree with FIA’s idea and instead claims that Sprint racing has been no good to the sport.
“The best Sprints are when there is tyre degradation. But most of the time, you put the medium tyre on, and you’re just flat out to the end. There is no good racing.” Considering the fact that Russell is a Sprint winner himself, his calls against the new type of racing is a wake up call for Formula 1.
George Russell’s F1 season recap
George Russell was currently in his second season with Mercedes-AMG, and he had an encouraging time in 2022 with the Silver Arrows. He had an exhilarating season with a 4th place finish in the driver’s championship ahead of Mercedes ace Lewis Hamilton and he carried Mercedes to their sole win in the Brazilian GP of 2022.
In comparison, Russell paled in his second season at Mercedes, achieving only 2 podiums compared to the 8 he secured in his earlier season. He wound up 8th in the driver’s championship with only 175 points, a whopping 100 points lower than 2022. George was not able to beat Lewis Hamilton this year as well as the last season and he described his experience as a strange occurrence.
“It’s been a very, very strange season. It’s been a season where we’ve had a lot of pace at times, but never achieved the results that I felt were deserved or were possible.”
“So, we definitely need to try and understand why that was. There’s been a huge amount of missed opportunities in many regards. It really hasn’t been a smooth season. But I think when everything’s flowing, when everything’s working right, luck tends to be on your side.”
Do you think the young Briton may prove to be a championship contender against Hamilton if Mercedes manages to make a competitive car in 2024? Make sure to tell us what you think in the comments.
