Domenicali puts reverse-grid Sprints back on F1’s agenda: “The vibes are growing”
Stefano Domenicali isn’t done poking the Sprint bear. Formula 1’s CEO has revived the idea of reverse-grid Sprint races, saying the sport needs to seriously revisit the format with the FIA and teams and, crucially, listen to fans who want more jeopardy on Saturdays.
Sprint, introduced in 2021 with three trial events and expanded to six in 2023, has too often delivered tyre-managed teasers rather than all-out scraps. Recent examples tell the story: a lights-to-flag win in China for Lewis Hamilton, a muted Spa dash enlivened only by Max Verstappen’s first-lap move on Oscar Piastri, and a Miami Sprint that only came alive thanks to changeable weather.
“We are open for that,” Domenicali told The Race podcast when asked about reverse grids. “I do believe there are possibilities to extend two things… can we apply [Sprint schedules] with more races? And is this the right formula to have the possibility to have a reverse grid, as we are doing with F2 and F3? The vibes to progress in this direction are definitely growing.”
This isn’t the first time Domenicali has pushed the concept. Every year since Sprints arrived, he’s floated the reversal idea; every year, teams and drivers have swatted it away as too contrived for F1. Still, he sounds emboldened now. “We need to listen to our fans, to try to create something, and not be worried to make mistakes. The one who believes he makes no mistakes doesn’t do anything new. Whatever the right format, we need to have [the Sprint]. It will represent the future.”
Drivers remain the hard no. Max Verstappen has long framed reverse grids as against the DNA of the championship. “It’s artificial and trying to create a show, which is not what F1 stands for,” he said. “The fastest car should be in the front. F1 is about pure performance.”
George Russell, speaking as a Grand Prix Drivers’ Association director, has also argued the concept would backfire on track craft. Put the quickest cars mid-pack and you risk locking the field into a DRS train as each front-running machine gets stuck behind its closest rival on pace. “The concept won’t work,” he said.
The politics are straightforward. F1 wants Saturday to matter. Fans want action that feels authentic. Teams and drivers don’t want gimmicks that undermine the main event or punish excellence. Domenicali’s pitch is to make Sprint a sandbox for experimentation—more events, different formats, perhaps a reversal limited to a portion of the grid—without touching Grand Prix Sunday.
Whether that’s enough to win over the paddock is another fight entirely. But with the conversation back on the table and the audience increasingly restless for variety, expect reverse grids to be debated louder—and sooner—than the purists would like.
