Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali has suggested scrapping free practice sessions during a race weekend. According to the Italian, these sessions are important for the engineers, but the fans don’t like them.
A race weekend in Formula 1 usually includes – except for a race weekend with a sprint race – three free practice sessions of sixty minutes. These are used by the drivers and teams to, for example, scout the track and look for the right settings for qualifying and the race. Apart from a few qualifying simulations, usually little exciting happens in these practice sessions, so it is not always seen as worth following for the slightly less fanatical fan.
Not a fan of Friday
It is no secret that Domenicali is not a fan of the current format, which only practices twice on Friday. Last year, for example, he once stated that World Cup points should be earned during every session: “You have to try, there are always excuses not to do something”, it sounded at the time. “There are purists who turn their noses up at it, but over the years Formula 1 has also changed the qualifying format dozens of times.”
Cancel free workouts
After the MotoGP race in Portugal on Sunday, Domenicali said: “I am in favor of scrapping free practice,” the Portuguese newspaper is quoted as saying. Sports TV. “These are important to the engineers, but the public doesn’t like them.” It seems unlikely that Domenicali’s view will gain support. The training sessions are logically important for the teams and drivers. In addition, promoters are unlikely to welcome the idea of shortening the event by one day.
