Fernando Alonso has led calls from drivers to revive one-shot qualifying as a solution to traffic problems around shorter grand prix tracks.
This weekend’s Austrian Grand Prix is held at the Red Bull Ring, which sees the shortest lap times of the entire season. The track has seen many near-misses over the years due to traffic building up in the final sector – including in 2021 when Alonso narrowly avoided hitting Sebastian Vettel, which prevented him progressing to Q3.Drivers will have to cope with twice as much traffic as there will be two qualifying sessions this weekend. The Austrian round is hosting the second sprint event of the season.
Asked how he believes the sport could address the problem of traffic in qualifying, Alonso suggested a return to the one-shot qualifying system used between 2003-2005, where drivers had only one flying lap to set a qualifying time.
“It is a topic every weekend, especially at short circuits,” Alonso acknowledged. “There are a few options to improve this.
“One is single-lap qualifying, like in the past. That would be ideal in my opinion, because only one car is on track.”
Alonso said one-lap qualifying has other advantages. “Full TV coverage for that lap for everyone’s sponsors and things like that. That created a little bit of drama in case of weather change in between qualifying – you could see different cars on pole position, different names. So that was, I think, my preferred option.”
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Other drivers are also keen to revive one-shot qualifying, including Carlos Sainz Jnr.
“Single-lap qualifying is maybe something to experiment with, as Fernando said, also maybe in sprint weekends as to try if it would work,” said the Ferrari driver.
“I personally was a big fan of it, because I do like that feeling of suddenly having the whole track for you and having the pressure to perform only in one lap. I think that would be really good fun for us. I think for our sponsors and for everyone.”
Sainz said television broadcasters could exploit modern graphics technology to enhance the spectacle of each lap.
“Maybe for the TV it would be a bit boring for you, I don’t know, it depends on the technology. You also have to animate that single lap, if you can put a ghost car of the fastest lap.
“I think we the technology that we have nowadays, something like that could be achievable with the mini sectors, with the ghost cars, with that kind of stuff that I think we should look into.”
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Sainz also repeated his call for F1 to consider splitting Q1 into two groups at smaller circuits, as Formula 2 does in Monaco. The idea was dismissed by some other drivers, but Sainz believes it has merit.
“I think the shorter-term solution would be to at least do Q1 in a split qualifying group – ten cars, one from each team,” he said.
“I think by Q2 the traffic already improves quite a bit. Q3 is not a problem, so it would be only short tracks in Q1, maybe divide the session by half and do eight minutes with one group, eight minutes with another group.”
Valtteri Bottas is also keen on the idea of introducing one-shot qualifying as the format for to set the grid for sprint races. The current sprint race qualifying format is similar to the regular arrangement, but run over a shorter time period.
“I would be personally a big fan of just one lap qualifying, like everyone would do one lap in maybe a random order or something,” he said.
However, not all drivers believe that one-shot qualifying is the right solution. While describing the format as “quite cool”, world champion Max Verstappen said the potential for track evolution to affect the results means he is “not sure it’s the best idea.”
“There is always traffic, but this has been Formula 1 as well – you just have to try and manage it,” Verstappen said. “I know some tracks of course are a bit better than others. It’s a tricky one.”
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2023 Austrian Grand Prix
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Proesterchen (@proesterchen)
29th June 2023, 15:19
Yes, it was provably boring. And terrible. And everyone is going to scream bloody murder in changing conditions.
Silly idea, trying to fix something that is demonstrably not broken.
S
29th June 2023, 15:51
Only the ones who don’t get their performance on point will be complaining, but now they’ll be complaining about the weather instead of traffic.
Many series run this type of format regularly, and the competitors don’t even bother making a fuss about it. It is what it is and everyone knows that nobody is controlling the weather. Any changes in conditions are just the way things go, not targeted at anyone.
It’s really no different to any other uncontrolled factors competitors are at the mercy of, such as mechanical reliability.
And ‘normality’ will return next time. It’s not like it’s gone forever.
Yellow Baron
29th June 2023, 16:23
I agree but I can see it working for sprint qualifying only. however it would still be boring so perhaps 2 cars doing a lap at the same time would be better
BasCB (@bascb)
29th June 2023, 21:06
It was incredibly boring. Nobody tuned in for the early runners, waiting for around when the top ten came in. Also, some drivers were clearly at an advantage with one lap qualifying while others always struggled to get a lap in. And I won’t even start thinking about doing a lap and having it cancelled due to track limits! Rain is another matter that made it a horrible experience since it would mostly mean that the conditions for some were markedly different from those for the other end of the grid.
kuvemar
29th June 2023, 21:50
Qualifying is the most broken thing about F1. 59 minutes of boredom and then a short period of hope that we won’t get the same results as the last 15 weekends.
frood19 (@frood19)
30th June 2023, 5:51
Qualifying is the least broken thing in F1, in my opinion. However, I don’t hate sainz’s idea of splitting Q1 in half but only if it’s 10 minutes each – I like the current duration of the whole qualifying session.
MacLeod (@macleod)
30th June 2023, 8:24
I agree terrible boring and i think myself will not watch that or will be in the circuit (even invitted) that day.
drmouse (@drmouse)
30th June 2023, 13:13
I’m not sure you can say it isn’t broken at the moment. There are some real problems with traffic in Q1 especially.
Personally, I think changing qually for the Sprints would be a good way to test it. I’d even go a stage further, make Friday “Sprint Day”, and have them all do a single lap with no practice/setup* (and no parc ferme), in championship order (leader first). That would make the sprints truly different instead of just a shortened version of the race. Then Saturday would be FP followed by Qually.
* It may be advisable to allow a short “bedding in” session beforehand, maybe 2-3 laps, just to ensure the cars are in working order.
Proesterchen (@proesterchen)
1st July 2023, 11:35
It’s not like they couldn’t do a lap in Q1, it’s that everyone wants to be the last to cross the start/finish line as the clock ticks down, to get the best track conditions on their fast lap.
Doesn’t really matter if there are 8, 12 or 20 cars, that bottleneck will always be the same.
drmouse (@drmouse)
1st July 2023, 13:53
There is often a significant advantage in seeing a time towards the end of the session. Of course they are all going to want that advantage. Without, they’re often going to be several tenths behind. It’s a consequence of the qualifying system.
When you add that they need at least a 3s gap through all parts of the lap to not be disadvantaged by dirty air, you can barely fit all the cars in a single lap. And with how careful they must be with the tyres to get them in optimum condition, you’re going to get very slow cars when they’re not on a hot lap.
All of these things combine, especially at a short track like Austria, to give massive problems with traffic in Q1 especially.
Señor Sjon
29th June 2023, 15:21
Please no. It was boring and viewership fell. What should be fixed is that drivers don’t trundle around in S3. They didn’t in the past and it is becoming a trend.
Perhaps proper tires with less fiddling on the steering wheel so you can do more laps on a run. Or go IndyCar and have the timing line between T8 and T9 so cars can go the the pit directly after their lap and don’t need to do a full inlap.
drmouse (@drmouse)
30th June 2023, 13:16
TBH minimum sector times would probably help, as would timing line changes. They could also try using something similar on the formation lap: It can be a ridiculous wait from the leader to the last car lining up on the grid at times.
Dani B. Molina (@esmiz)
29th June 2023, 15:29
YES please.
For me, it is the most fun and interesting type of qualifying, since you can see the onboard laps of all the drivers. Also a small mistake leaves you on the back of the grid.
The problems that I see are the days of changing conditions, and that at the end of the session there is more rubber on the track than at the beginning. But apart from that, for me, I hope they do it.
PeterG
29th June 2023, 16:22
@esmiz
We can already do that as F1TV includes live & archive access to onboard cameras for every driver for every session.
So it’s already possible since 2018 to watch every qualifying lap onboard every driver.
Dani B. Molina (@esmiz)
29th June 2023, 17:10
F1 TV Access (which I have) doesn’t have that live coverage, and in many countries (including mine, Spain) you cannot buy F1TV Pro because the channel that broadcasts here (Dazn) has exclusive rights, and does not offer multi-channel viewing or onboards nor any other advantage that F1TV Pro has.
There is an alternative, Movistar, but to be able to access the onboards you have to buy the complete pack and the last time I looked at it it cost almost 100 euros a month.
Also, even if I could, I don’t think my vision or brain can handle 4 or 5 simultaneous onboards. With this kind of qualifying, you can easily see them, because they go one after another.
I respect if it is not the option that people like the most, but that is why I have put “for me” at the beginning of the comment. It is a personal preference.
S
29th June 2023, 15:39
Finally!
Now we can watch the whole thing – not just the final corner and main straight, and the graphics.
If this session format is particularly boring to anyone, it would certainly be worse if most of it occurred off camera. Like it normally does…
I don’t know about other motorsports enthusiasts (if there are actually any left around F1) but I personally prefer watching cars and drivers in action more than timing screens.
Crazy, right?
Ronald
29th June 2023, 15:42
I just don’t understand the constant need to change anything about qualifying in F1. Of the entire weekend it is probably the only part that (almost) always delivers. But still every other week someone shows up to change this part of the weekend. It’s crazy!
Please do not go back to the single lap qualifying setup. It was horrible and dull to watch. I cannot remember speaking to anyone that actually liked it better than the current way of qualifying. Keep your hands of it!
S
29th June 2023, 15:53
I liked it.
Now you know someone who did. Don’t forget.
Señor Sjon
29th June 2023, 16:04
The people who remember how boring it was are at least in their thirties now. So they no longer belong to the 18-30 target group.
Bullfrog (@bullfrog)
29th June 2023, 19:35
But they’re the ones with the money.
Alesici
29th June 2023, 15:44
I think they should swallow their pride, watch a Formula E qualifying session and copy its duels format. All those people perpetually saying F1’s qualifying format is not broken probably don’t watch Indycar or Formula E qualifying.
But I’ll settle for 1 lap qualifying – I loved it. Much better than the current F1 format of just watching the finishing line and seeing how everyone’s times compare as they all finish their final laps basically at the same time.
Proesterchen (@proesterchen)
29th June 2023, 15:50
Rewind just 13 days. How much would you have “loved” single-lap qualifying under constantly changing conditions?
MichaelN
29th June 2023, 17:32
Changing conditions make for mixed up grids, which usually make for memorable races. Plus with single lap qualifying, no matter the conditions, viewers get to see all the cars, all the laps, in their entirety. It’s the best way to showcase F1 on the absolute limit.
Besides, changing conditions is no big deal. Outdoor sports deal with it all the time.
PeterG
29th June 2023, 16:11
I watch Indycar and Formula E and think F1’s current qualifying format is far better.
I especially dislike the duals format Formula E use, Always ends up feeling really anti-climactic which is the sane problem the one lap format suffered from last time F1 used it any in every other category I’ve seen which has used it.
Matt (@hollidog)
29th June 2023, 15:48
Duels is an awful format, there is so much wasted time between all the stages. Quali takes forever.
Have Q1&2 as normal then have a one lap each top 10 shootout for Q3.
Chris Horton
29th June 2023, 16:02
No, it was terrible.
Bring back 12 lap quali please.
Kyle (@hammerheadgb)
29th June 2023, 16:04
I like Valtteri’s idea. Leave regular qualifying alone, but where we have a need to set a separate sprint grid, the format as-is is too similar to the regular one. One-lap qualifying for sprint grids would differentiate it. The penalty for being caught out by changing track conditions would be lesser (as only 8 points are on offer in the sprint race anyway).
Jere (@jerejj)
29th June 2023, 16:05
The biggest downside with the one-shot format was possible mixed weather affecting some more than others, so I’m largely unkeen on reintroducing that format especially for regular use.
However, I could be okay with replacing the Saturday shootout qualifying for sprint events at max.
I’d be more okay with Sainz’s group idea for short tracks, a good suggesition, also the reference about having one driver from each team per group rather than both from five teams.
Super Formula is another single-seater series that uses this group approach for qualifyings, albeit on all tracks.
MichaelN
29th June 2023, 17:24
That’s a downside for the teams, but for the viewers it’s great. As much as people like to complain about series that use a reverse-grid, F1 races where competitive drivers start way back and have to make their way up through the field are usually well regarded.
BasCB (@bascb)
29th June 2023, 21:09
It’s not great at all in practice because it just means that some never get a chance to set a decent time. And people tended to turn in only for the top ten cars to run anyway, so viewership was down for the first 40 minutes.
Jere (@jerejj)
29th June 2023, 18:08
I didn’t notice I mistyped ‘suggestion’ until a moment ago.
Axel
29th June 2023, 16:05
I kinda agree with Max, traffic is and will always be a problem. The main issue and concern for me is the amount of high speed near misses with cars doing 50km/h before the final corner(s) while waiting to start their lap. Last weekend we narrowly avoided multiple Villeneuve like crashes with a driver approaching the final chicane about 250km/h faster than another driver in front who is barely able to see behind him. Maybe introducing or increasing a minimum speed in every mini sector like with the VSC and SC delta’s?
BHJ
29th June 2023, 16:07
I actually kind of liked it back when it was a shootout with one driver at a time. Perhaps a hybrid with only the last session being a shootout would work? The running order of the last session could then be determined based on the results of the two previous sessions?
PeterG
29th June 2023, 16:15
The one lap format was awful both for those watching on TV but especially for those in the stands. I dothink I’ve ever been as bored at a racetrack as i was during those one lap borefests.
Would be the same even if it was just the top 10.
One car qualifying is an awful format that introduces far more negatives than positives and never ends up been as exciting to watch as what we have now.
MichaelN
29th June 2023, 17:23
One lap qualifying is fantastic. It’s all-out action all the time because every second matters and the viewer gets to see all of it. It’s much easier to appreciate the differences between a Williams and a Red Bull when you can see them push their cars to the limit over a full lap.
F1 qualifying is now just watching the timing bar on the left against a backdrop of either a static shot of the startline or some clips of cars in sector 3.
János
29th June 2023, 17:53
Just copy what Indycar is doing:
Move the start-finish line to BEFORE the pit entry for qualifying so that people who end their fast lap can dive into the pits right away!
Problem solved!
Bullfrog (@bullfrog)
29th June 2023, 19:40
They should try it for sprint qualifying. Why does qualifying need to be a whole lap? Especially when it’s not for pole position, and not for a whole race.
pastaman
30th June 2023, 2:02
It’s still a whole lap, it’s just the s/f line is moved to before pit entry so they can exit immediately after completing the lap.
BassClef (@bassclef)
29th June 2023, 18:22
How about not driving slowly on a race track. The problem is drivers puttering around the track, so stop doing that.
Jon
29th June 2023, 20:04
I like older format.
1 hour.
Do what you want.
Current format is perfect for highlights as most people only interest in last 10minutes. Especially since i have to pay to watch it live.
1 lap shoot out would mean for me qually would cease to exist. It was so dull and unfair i stopped watching when it was tried ages ago
J Soulsby (@jmsoulsby)
29th June 2023, 21:14
The fact that there are two qualifying sessions doesn’t double the traffic. It just means that the drivers have to face the same traffic twice, which is something else.
Pedro (@)
29th June 2023, 21:14
Why does Formula One tries to keep changing one of the few things that ain’t broke(qualifying)?
André
29th June 2023, 21:30
Nope. It’s unfair, because of track evolution and changing conditions.
Russell
29th June 2023, 23:21
What I would like is:
1. One shot qualifying but in rounds, IE one timed lap per round
2. drivers leave the pits every 5 seconds and must complete their out lap in a certain time
2. Randomize the order in each round
3. Split the field into 2/3 heats at the start, slowest from each heat go out
4. Could make it more than 3 rounds, say 4 or 5, so that it lasts longer
DB-C90 (@dbradock)
30th June 2023, 3:23
Here’s a thought, how about teams get their drivers out into clear air for their qualy lap earlier rather than wait until the very last available second along with every other driver.
Sooner or later there’s going to be a horrendously pile up in the last corner (or corners) when the driver at the back speeds up to make it to the line and finds three or 4 cars parked in the final corner.
It doesn’t need fixing, it just needs common sense. Failing that rules will need to be put in place, and heavily enforced, to penalise excessively slow driving in the last sector.
S
30th June 2023, 11:01
There are rules in place already – they just aren’t enforced.
This is F1, where people complain bitterly when rules are actually enforced – and not just the participants.