Ahead of the Formula 1 Italian Grand Prix, several team principals spoke out in favor of a proposed rookie sprint race at the end of the season, giving young drivers a chance to showcase their talent at the end of a long year.
Now, a few more team bosses are going on the record in favor of such an event.
At Friday’s FIA Press Conference ahead of this weekend’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix three more team principals came out in favor of the idea, including Red Bull boss Christian Horner. Asked about the proposed event by longtime F1 journalist Adam Cooper, Horner and others gave their backing to the proposal.
“Yeah, it’s something that I tabled at the last couple of Formula 1 Commissions because I think it’s great for the young drivers,” began Horner. “And I think that the problem with some of the rookie tests is they all get used for testing. You never know, are they running on 50 kilos, 70 kilos, 30 kilos of fuel? What engine mode are they going? You don’t really know. You don’t know how the opposition are doing.
“So I think this is a non-championship race for the junior drivers. I think it’s a fantastic opportunity and I think that it comes at the end of a busy season, but opposed to just running around burning fuel and tires and only the teams that are running those drivers knowing whether they’re doing a good job or not to give potentially ten drivers or ten rookies the opportunity of jumping in the current cars and having the equivalent of a Sprint race, I think is fantastic,” continued Horner. “And I think it’ll be a really popular event.”
Haas Team Principal Ayao Komatsu — who is overseeing young Oliver Bearman’s drive in place of Kevin Magnussen this weekend as he serves a one-race penalty ban — also gave his support to the idea.
“Yeah, I think it’s great,” said Komatsu. “You know, the post-season test, if we don’t do things like that, you are just doing the tire test. So I think it adds value to the day and makes it more exciting and another opportunity to put young drivers in the car. These days, it’s such a rare opportunity for young drivers to get in the current Formula 1 car. So I think it’s really an interesting move.”
Sauber Team Representative Alessandro Alunni Bravi joined in the chorus. “I fully agree with Ayao. It’s important to give the rookies more opportunities, to show them. We know how much it’s difficult to get into Formula 1, so I think that FP1 sessions are not sufficient to showcase what you can do. and there are a lot of risks linked to proper performance in FP1 also for the team,” said Alunni Bravi. “This is a really nice opportunity.”
Next season will see several new drivers joining the grid: Bearman at Haas, Jack Doohan at Alpine, and Andrea Kimi Antonelli at Mercedes. There is also potential for a fourth rookie to join the grid, as Gabriel Bortoleto has emerged as a strong contender for the seat at Sauber alongside Nico Hülkenberg.
Then there is the idea of Liam Lawson sliding into a seat at Visa Cash App RB F1 Team, as they have not yet announced who will be driving alongside Yuki Tsunoda next season.
But this proposed rookie race might help open the door for some new faces in the years to come.