F1 Bosses Unanimously Agree To Scrap Failed Qualifying Format
F1’s new elimination-style qualifying format bombed pretty damn hard on Saturday, with a boring, uneventful and weird session deciding the grid. There was a lack of on-track action, especially in Q3, and it unsurprisingly sparked intense criticism from fans, drivers and teams.
Some F1 bosses immediately said it should be scrapped, even though they were the ones who voted the new rule through. Now, after a meeting ahead of the Australian Grand Prix, we now have confirmation it has been binned.
The series will go back to the old, three-part system from the Bahrain Grand Prix – the next race on the calendar – onwards, where six drivers will drop out at the end of the first and second sessions before the top 10 shoot-out.
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff told Autosport:
“There was a meeting, with a unanimous decision taken to go back to the old format from Bahrain onwards. It needs to be ratified by the F1 Commission, but I would like to see who puts his hand up for yesterday’s qualifying. It should be done in the next few days.
“There were positive discussions. There were some teams who thought Q1 and Q2 would shake up things and would be interesting, but fundamentally common sense prevailed. We are now back to something we understand, where we have regulations and not reinvent something new.
“We would look really silly if there was a new compromise for next week, and then again we didn’t like it.”
He said the qualifying format will “maybe” be looked at again for next season. But for now, the elimination-style system is gone and good riddance.
Comments
I’m dead laughing at how sh!t F1 has become..
It’s funny actually, that qualifying was SO bad but that the race was so good. If it had been the old system the whole weekend would have been a pretty big success.
The racing was amazing, what are you on about? Qualifying is boring anyway.
Finally! Maybe they now realize the problem is much deeper than just changing the qualify or increasing the number of passes. Oh wait, they don’t.
What a f*ing gong show that was…
F1 bosses be like
i think its fantastic that the teams have such a say in the F1 format, pretty much means if something really bad happens 1 race the teams can just change it to an overall prefered state, shame the new format didnt turn out to be awesome, i imagined it being cars 1 by 1 being eliminated until the top 2 cars are flying around the track with tonnes of space trying to get that tiny bit of difference, in reality teams got to a spot they were happy with and just parked up. worth a try atleast
I’ll watch f1 when it stops being so hammered by stupid rules so that means never
i’ll watch F1 again when they put back V12’s in those cars.. Cuz they sound like crap now..
If that is the only reason you watched F1, then you have completely missed the essence of F1.
F1 Has to move with the times, companies seen sponsoring massively thirsty cars would be immediately ridiculed. Sure the sound isn’t great but its still F1
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I think they shouldn’t given up on the idea so fast… Teams didn’t do their homework properly!