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The Red Bull F1 team has never been a fan of sprint races. Now, it appears that the drinks company was one of the catalysts responsible for keeping the number of sprint races this season to three.
When questioned about his opinion on the new qualifying format, Red Bull team principal Christian Horner was quite blunt. He pointed out the lack of impact the new format made and the kind of dent it had on the budget.
According to Horner, Red Bull was not in favor of going ahead with the sprint races altogether. In the interest of the sport, however, the Milton Keynes-based outfit agreed to three weekends having the same format. Speaking to the BBC, Horner said:
“But in the interest of the sport, we have agreed to three. We can’t even pass on inflation. Look at current gas and electricity bills and current inflation. The cap on the budget cap was locked in the middle of the corona crisis. In many ways, it is irrelevant to what is currently happening in the modern world. That’s why it’s limited to three sprint races.”
When the new sprint race format was introduced last season, it was supposed to be trialed for three races. Based on how the format plays out, the number of sprint races was supposed to subsequently increase.
In 2021, sprint races took place at Silverstone, Monza, and Sau Paulo. After being applauded for the novelty factor that was introduced over the weekend, F1 intended to double the number of sprint races to six this season.
With an increased number of races leading to an increased cost, teams, however, were not in favor of this decision. Their main point of contention was the huge dent these races made in their budget cap. As a result, the 2022 F1 season will feature sprint races on only three weekends.
Red Bull keeping its cards close to the chest during pre-season tests
According to many F1 pundits and insiders, Red Bull has kept its cards close to the chest during pre-season tests. Once the racing begins, it might turn out to be one of the front-runners.
According to former F1 driver-turned-TV pundit Jolyon Palmer, Red Bull stood out with its radically designed car and striking characteristics in the Barcelona test. What also seemed obvious to him, however, was the fact that the team had not, for the lack of a better term, 'unleashed the Bull' yet.
With Mercedes bringing what seems to be a game-changing innovation to the second test, it will be interesting to see where the protagonists of last season stand concerning each other.
