Wolff did not find Austria sprint race entertaining: 'Max disappeared'

Not everyone is yet convinced about the presence of the sprint races in Formula 1. Friday is perhaps more interesting, as there is only one free practice session and a real qualifying session, but the sprint races themselves are not yet as spectacular as might be hoped. Toto Wolff knows that too.

Wolff feels that the lack of excitement in the sprint races at Imola and Red Bull Ring is not so much down to the overall format. He believes that a shorter race of 100 kilometres on Saturday could certainly add value to the premier class of motor racing, but he feels that the sprint races are not entertaining enough now because of the big performance differences between the teams.

The Mercedes team boss says to Motorsport-Total.com: "Verstappen disappears into the distance, the two Ferraris provide the only entertainment during the race and we are in no man's land. The others are even further back and are in a DRS train. Then it can never be a good sprint," he told the German website.

More sprint races in 2023?

There have been talks in recent months by the teams and other stakeholders in Formula 1 about increasing the number of sprint races from three to six. This plan was already on the table for 2022, but did not make it through. For 2023 Liberty Media and the teams would have agreed on doubling the number of weekends with a sprint race, but the FIA is still opposed. The governing body would like to see a financial compensation.

Possibly next year a sprint race will be organised during the Dutch Grand Prix weekend. In December Jan Lammers told this website that there have been talks with Liberty Media.