Mercedes boss Toto Wolff against radical Formula 1 weekend change

Mercedes

Mercedes: Why F1 should not make radical change

Liberty Media have plans...

Martin Macdonald

Monday 19 August 2019 13:56

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Mercedes boss Toto Wolff is against the idea of scrapping Friday practice sessions on a Formula 1 weekend, but is open to the idea of making the time on the track shorter.

Liberty Media, as part of their plan to make F1 weekends more streamlined, are reportedly toying with the idea of either eliminating the Friday practice entirely, or making it later in the day.

Wolff is against both of these plans, citing DTM as an example of a series which carried out something similar only for it not to work out.

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"We did that in the DTM many years ago and it felt like the weekend was not spectacular and special anymore,” said the Silver Arrows team principal.

“If it's cut short to two days it takes some value out of a race weekend and Formula 1 is the pinnacle of motor racing, and it’s the world championship among engineers, drivers and the best teams. Therefore, that is a thing I wouldn't change - I would leave it on Friday.”

The Austrian is of the opinion that the less time spent on the track before the race arguably makes for a more competitive GP as teams aren’t as sure what to expect on the Sunday.

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“When you're not able to tune your car that well, then you have more gaps,” he suggested.

“Whether that is the reason why some teams are falling away and others are doing better, I'm not entirely sure, but it could well be the case."

Therefore, he thinks cutting down the running time of the practice could be an inspired solution to the quandary, but there has been no suggestion that Liberty Media will go with that option as of yet.

“What we can think about is cutting a session short on Friday or reducing the running time to 60 and 60 minutes rather than 90 minutes,” he added.

“These are things that are worth considering but I wouldn't go for a radical cancellation of the Friday.”