Possibly no sprint races in 2022: 'Big teams try to take advantage'

It could just be that in 2022, instead of six, there will be no sprint races at all. Formula 1 would like to host more sprint races, but the big teams are being very difficult, according to Zak Brown.

In 2021, sprint races were experimented with for the first time in Formula 1. In Britain, Italy and Brazil, a sprint race was held on Saturday as a qualifier for Sunday's race. Reactions were mixed afterwards, but F1 was keen to expand this format to six sprint races in 2022.

No sprint races in 2022?

For that, however, F1 needs permission from a minimum of eight teams, and for the time being it is not getting that. Brown told the BBC that big teams try to take advantage of the plight of F1. The sport does want to compensate the teams with a higher budget cap, but the big teams are trying to exploit that.

''A couple of teams, and one team in particular, wanted a $5m budget cap increase, which was just ridiculous. And no rational facts behind it. When you challenged them, they go to what if and could and you've got to anticipate. You sit there and go 'This is just nonsense', '' says the McLaren CEO.

Big teams trying to take advantage

Which team is involved in this case Brawn does not say, but the big teams he is referring to are normally Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull Racing. Mercedes has a partnership with McLaren which in all likelihood would not make Brown speak so much if it were Mercedes, so it's likely going to be Ferrari or Red Bull.

According to Brown, F1 would be better off focusing on 2023. To schedule more sprint races there, the leadership only needs five of the ten teams to vote for the plan. Brown hopes that a compromise will still be found for 2023: ''Otherwise some teams will have some explaining to do to the fans.''