Verstappen: "It's not smart to put a Sprint race on a circuit that hasn't been raced on in a long time"

World motorsport is making a transition from a traditional sporting activity to a show sport. This is the reason why, first F1 and then MotoGP have profoundly changed the race weekend by introducing the so-called 'Sprint Race'. And if motorcycling has adopted it for the entire championship - 21 Sprint races - on the contrary, the top championship of motor racing has decided to carry out only six.

One of them will be held just this weekend in China. Now the last time China hosted an F1 race was in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic.
F1 now returns to the challenging Shanghai International Circuit after a four-season absence, with teams facing several unknowns, including the regulatory change to ground effect single-seaters.

Thanks, or rather because of the new format drivers will therefore have just 60 minutes to find the ideal set-up.

That is why the championship leader, Verstappen, when questioned on this very topic sarcastically replied, "Yes, it is very smart to do it. Joking aside, it's not the best, because when you're away from a track for a while, you never know what you're going to risk, so it would have been better to organize a normal race weekend."

This year the Sprints will follow a modified format, with free practice and the Sprint Shootout taking place on Friday and the Sprint on Saturday morning. Qualifying for Sunday's long race, on the other hand, will take place on Saturday afternoon.

This change means that the parc fermé will reopen after the Sprint for Saturday qualifying, responding to complaints that the original format was too restrictive.

The new format will also be challenging for those trying their luck with online slots at Amazon Slots. They will need to be focused and attentive so as not to miss every detail.

What's more, resurfacing work is also underway at the Shanghai track which adds another exciting variable, but we're not sure if the same is true for the engineers and drivers, who might prefer a normal weekend.