Verstappen gets his way: F1 presents plans for 2024

Midway through Friday in Abu Dhabi, the FIA shared information on the F1 Commission meeting held. A list of points was discussed, but what will really change in Formula 1 and what remains to be decided?

What will F1 sprint races look like in 2024?

Six sprint races were held in 2023, and the plan is to continue in 2024. Yet, there is some criticism of the format among drivers, teams and fans. Max Verstappen regularly states that the sprint format makes the rest of the weekend too predictable. This should change in 2024.

The F1 Commission meeting has not yet yielded an immediate result. It will be confirmed in a few weeks what F1 has decided, but the teams have had their say. Andrea Stella already hinted where it could go in the press conference in Abu Dhabi. The weekend and the rules need a shake-up.

Indeed, the predictability problem comes from parc fermé that kicks in after F1 qualifying on Friday. After one practice session, a setup is fixed. If you get it right, that's fine. Otherwise, you're screwed for the rest of the weekend. Not only that, but the weekend also becomes predictable. After all, with the same setup, qualifying and races are pretty much comparable.

The plan would be to move the sprint shootout to Friday to get around this. The sprint race would then be run first on Saturday, followed by qualifying for the Grand Prix. Only after qualifying will parc fermé start. So, this gives more time to tinker with the setup and the chance of different results in qualifying and races.

The potentially new format does have one drawback: the consequence of crashes in the sprint race has huge consequences for the rest of the weekend. If you write your car off in the sprint race, you are unlikely to enter qualifying, and thus, your race is also partly ruined. How this can be circumvented remains to be seen.

F1 teams not allowed to work on F1 car before 2026

It was just one small rule in the FIA's message, but one with big implications: "No more development work may be done before 2025 on the 2026 car." Although 2026 still sounds very far away, this is again the time when the regulations may be shaken up. To what extent the rules will be changed is not yet entirely clear, but it is clear when teams will be allowed to start working on them.

It looks like a similar measure that F1 took in 2020/2021, during the coronavirus pandemic to not develop cars for a year. That way, 2021 saw an interesting battle of teams that continued to develop until the last gasp and teams that opted to work on the 2022 car early on. Red Bull Racing did the impossible that year by doing both.

So 2025 creates another such year. In 2023 and 2024, no wind tunnel or CFD work is allowed on the 2026 car. Therefore, in 2025, all focus will be on the 2026 car, but teams must also consider the ongoing season.

Racing in rain and tyre blankets

2024 will also see a continuation of testing with so-called mudguards around the wheels in the spring. The spray is a major problem for F1, as the spray from the tyres and cars means that races can't be run in medium-heavy rain. F1 sees this as a major area of improvement for the sport.

The mudguards have not yet proved to be the solution, so more tests will follow in spring 2024 to see if this design is the future. Should it be, more tests may soon follow to take the concept to the real world.

Helping drivers in heat like Qatar

The Qatar Grand Prix also caused a stir in F1. The enormous heat was a problem for many drivers. Logan Sargeant had to retire, while other drivers had to visit the doctor afterwards. F1 has announced that it will do further analysis to avoid this. For now, at least, more space has been made in the existing regulations to allow this.

Budget cap made to be increased

The budget cap in F1 is also being increased slightly again. The budget cap was first introduced in 2021 to reduce costs in the sport and provide opportunities for all participants. There are already some exceptions to the rule. For instance, spending on drivers' salaries is not included and the three most expensive staff do not count either. 

Namely, the F1 Commission has decided that from now on, expenses incurred for innovation around sustainability will not count towards the budget cap. Specifically, this would include costs incurred on research into sustainability and implementing a certain strategy around sustainability.