F1’s newest race? All you need to know about the rookie sprint ahead of crucial vote

The possibility of a post-season rookie Sprint race in Abu Dhabi will be put before the F1 Commission for discussion this week.

A mooted idea to set a batch of rookie drivers loose in current machinery as a replacement for the usual Young Driver’s Test could be agreed upon at an F1 Commission meeting on Wednesday.

What is the F1 Rookie Sprint race idea?

Usually, following the season finale in Abu Dhabi, the teams all stay on for an additional day or two of testing. In recent years, these test days have been split in two – one test for Pirelli’s tyre development programme, while, concurrently, a batch of rookie or junior drivers are set loose on the track for a Young Driver test at the wheel of the current machines.

However, for this year, a suggestion has been made to alter the nature of the running for the Young Driver Test and, rather than letting them just pound around the track all day, instead, host a Sprint format race with practice, qualifying, and a race using the cars the usual race drivers have just climbed out of after a long season.

The details of this proposal haven’t been publicly formalised yet, nor is the proposal certain to be passed. Given the turnaround of just two months between now and the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, there are plenty of factors to be taken into account to be able to make it happen.

Aside from the practicalities of needing a ‘race team’ to stay on at Yas Marina, rather than the usual barebones test team, agreeing on the format and regulations to be used for the outing needs specifying – as do considerations like engine and tyre allocations (do the rookies have to use previously used components or will they be given fresh ones?), what specifications can the cars be raced in (previously used configurations or can teams experiment?), and even how to specify the finances (will the race fall under the budget cap considerations or not?).

There’s also the question mark over what happens to Pirelli’s tyre running on the day. Given the need for the tyre manufacturer to carry out its own testing programme, the organisation of a Sprint race would obviously prevent tyre testing from taking place at the same time, meaning that time might need to be compensated for somehow.

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What have the F1 team bosses had to say about the F1 Rookie Sprint race idea?

The topic has met with plenty of support from leading team bosses, who are eager to see how these promising youngsters fare in racing conditions rather than the more sterile testing environment.

At Monza, Mercedes’ team boss Toto Wolff revealed there was “no one in the room who didn’t support the idea” as the objectives for the team bosses are all the same: “We want to give them more exposure, more running time, and that is where we landed”.

“We discussed it in the F1 Commission and I think we’re keen on giving rookie drivers more opportunity,” he said.

“The stretch is that if you give it to them on a Grand Prix race weekend, it’s going to impact the main drivers, or it could impact the main drivers’ performances.

“If you let them race on a main weekend, it could influence the race result, which could be pretty damaging if you’re fighting for a championship. So we really didn’t find another way of letting them go through this whole sequence of a race weekend, pushing the car, being able to make comparisons.

“Because with a day of racing in Abu Dhabi, they’re all going to be on the same fuel. They’re all going to be on the same tyre. And it will be interesting to see how they compare in those respective cars. And the season is finished.

“It’s going to be a strain for the team, obviously, because we have another day. But we are in the entertainment industry and that’s the best idea so far that we have come up to give them more driving time.”

Red Bull team boss Christian Horner said the obvious advantage of the suggestion is that it widens the shop window as, rather than only a driver’s team knowing what they’re doing on track, the rookie driver’s abilities in a racing scenario will be far more evident.

“It’s something that I tabled at the last couple of Formula 1 Commissions because I think it’s great for the young drivers,” he said.

“I think that the problem with some of the rookie tests is they all get used for testing. You never know, are they running on 50 kilos, 70 kilos, 30 kilos of fuel? What engine mode are they going? You don’t really know. You don’t know how the opposition are doing.

“So I think this is a non-championship race for the junior drivers. I think it’s a fantastic opportunity and I think that it comes at the end of a busy season, but as opposed to just running around burning fuel and tyres and only the teams that are running those drivers knowing whether they’re doing a good job or not to give potentially 10 drivers or 10 rookies the opportunity of jumping in the current cars and having the equivalent of a Sprint race, I think is fantastic. And I think it’ll be a really popular event.”

With the idea going before the F1 Commission on Wednesday, October 2nd, a super majority of votes will be required of the 30 available – the teams have a vote each, making up 10, while the FIA and FOM’s representatives are given 10 votes each.

With this being an in-season introduction of a rules tweak, the F1 Commission must pass the vote with a super majority of 28/30 votes in order to proceed – an example of this occuring was last year, when the Sprint format was tweaked.

“Well, it’s like all things in life: if you want it to happen, you make it happen,” Horner said of the matter.

“I think there was a clear directive to say, ‘Come on, let’s get the job done for this year’.

“And so, obviously, that puts pressure on the Sporting Working Groups and the various team managers to work with the FIA to come up with a set of regulations. But I think mainly adopting Sprint regs and so on, it’s eminently doable. It doesn’t need to be overcomplicated.

“I think it’s just going to be a single car from each team rather than two cars. And effectively, you’re just using the mileage in a different way as opposed to, you know, just performing over during a test day. So I think the event will take place all in one day. So a qualifying and then the equivalent of a sprint race. So, yeah, it comes at the end of a long season, but I think it’ll be a great thing. It’s a great opportunity for the young drivers, and we’re fully supportive of it.”

Other voices of support include VCARB CEO Peter Bayer, Sauber’s team representative Alessandro Alunni Bravi, and Haas’ team boss Ayao Komatsu, who said: “ I think it’s great. You know, the post-season test, if we don’t do things like that, you are just doing the tyre test. So I think it adds value to the day and makes it more exciting and another opportunity to put young drivers in the car. These days, it’s such a rare opportunity for young drivers to get in the current Formula 1 car. So I think it’s really an interesting move. ”

Given the difficulties in giving young drivers a chance to drive contemporary machinery, Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur said the addition of a new, more useful, opportunity can only be a good thing.

“With the current regulation and the three days of testing that you have during the winter, it’s not easy to give them mileage,” he said.

“On the top, we were thinking to give them the opportunity to do more FP1, but they are doing already 14 races in F2. On the top of this, we have the Sprint races where you can’t give the FP1. Plus some tracks, it’s not easy. We will never give up the FP1 in Singapore or Monaco or Baku.

“It means that, at the end of the day, we don’t have so many opportunities to give them the opportunity to test the car in the real condition and outside of the TPC system. And I think this opportunity could be a good one to also to give them the full weekend with a free practice quality and start. And so for sure, it’s not easy to organise and so, but I’m supportive.”