Will Max Verstappen really quit F1 over sprint format? Damon Hill suggests 'he's not having fun'
F1🦹 first introduced the sprint format in 2021 with three races. For 2023, the number of sprint events has been doubled to six, and there are plans for further tweaks in time for the next race in Azerbaijan.
At the Australian Grand Prix, Verstappen warned he would 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:consider leaving F1 if championship bosses continued to tinker w🧔ith the format.
“Even if you change theꦫ format, I don’t find that is i𓄧n the DNA of F1 to do these kind of sprint races,” the Red Bull driver said in Melbourne.
“I💧 hope there won’t be too many changes, otherwise I won’t be around for൲ too long.
"I am not a fan of it at all. When we do all that k🐻ind of stuff, the weekend becomes very intense and we already do a lot of races.”
Verstappen added: “We are head✃ing into seasons where we could have 24 or 25 races and if you then start adding more it is not worth it for me. I willꦐ not enjoy that.
“F1 is about getting the most out of it in qualifying and have an ama꧃zing Su💟nday over a long race distance. That is the DNA of the sport and I don’t understand why we need to change that.”
Genuine threat, or a tactical ploy?
♚The subject of Verstappen’s quit threat wa🧔s discussed on the latest episode of the Sky Sports F1 podcast.
1996 world champion 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Damon Hill questioned Verstappen’s enjoyment factor an♒d believes the two-time world champion’s warning should be taken at face value.
“Max’s retirement threat is very ൲unusual,” he said. “This is kind of strange to hear, isn’t it? I mean, what’s he going to do with himself?
“I think fun is a very important point, is he having 🍃fun? Because I sometimes think he’s not having fun. You hꦑave to love what you are doing, otherwise it’s a grind.”
However, Sky Sports F1 presenter Simon Lazenby suggested 🎃Ver♍stappen’s public opposition to the sprint format is directly linked to Red Bull’s current domination.
“It’s just his way of saying ‘we don’t like sprint races because we are winning 💯comfortably, and why would we bring in𓆏 more risk if we don’t need to. I object, your honour’,” Lazenby said.
“Maybe I’m being cynical... He’s an old-school racer. Max is one of these people that believes in the s🙈anctity of the grand prix and that’s definitely a case you could argue.
“But I do believe there’s an element of ‘we’ve got the best car, why would you bring in any more jeopardy?♎’ I think if they were coming fourth and fifth they’d be like ‘ok, well, it adds an extra dimension whereby we can challenge those that have the dominant car’.”
But Hill disagreed with Lazenby, arguing: “I think there’s an element of this with Max of him not wanting to waste his time doi🐽ng superfluous things that are invented for novelty reasons. He’s that kind of person.
“So I can imagine him just saying it because he’s💯 thinking ‘I just want to win grands prix - I just want one race t🃏o mean something. I don’t want to win a half-value race, what’s the point of that on your CV? People aren’t going to go ‘how many Grand Prix have you won? Now how many Sprints have you won?'”
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