World motorsport authorities expanded the Formula 1 sprint format beyond the original three races to six Grand Prix events, a change that took effect with the 2023 season. The F1 sprint is a short, high intensity race designed to set the starting grid for the main Sunday Grand Prix, while giving fans three days of competitive action over a single weekend. The sprint concept, first introduced in 2021, has grown to become a regular feature on the calendar, with the Friday qualifying session determining sprint starting positions and an additional 100 kilometer sprint on Saturday deciding the grid for Sunday. This structure adds extra drama and keeps teams and drivers sharpening their pace across the entire weekend.
Several venues have hosted sprint weekends since the expansion started. Silverstone, Monza, and Interlagos staged the first triple sprint weekend in 2021, while Imola, Red Bull Racing, and Interlagos were selected for the 2022 iteration to test and refine the format. Formula 1 President and Chief Executive Officer Stefano Domenicali has publicly confirmed that six Grand Prix events will include sprint races, highlighting that the changes bring more suspense and opportunities for every driver to demonstrate performance across three days. The weekend now features action from Friday morning through the main event on Sunday, with drivers competing for positions and incentives across sessions.
The global motorsport governing body, the FIA World Motor Sports Council, voted to approve the increase in events that include sprint sessions on the FIA World Championship calendar, elevating the number of sprint weekends from three to six starting in the 2023 season. This decision was announced by social media channels and confirmed by FIA leadership, signaling a sustained push to evolve the formula and keep fans engaged through a faster, more unpredictable pace at multiple tracks. The initial public reception noted strong enthusiasm from fans, teams, organizers, and partners, appreciating the added dimension that sprint weekends bring to Formula 1 and supporting the ongoing effort to secure the format’s future success. The FIA president, Mohammed Ben Sulayem, described the approval as another indicator of sustained growth and prosperity at the highest level of motorsport, underscoring that sprint sessions deliver dynamic competition and have shown popularity over the preceding two seasons. He added confidence that the positive trend would continue as the World Motor Sport Council expanded sprint events.