F1
The F1 Sprint is back for 2025 and bringing more thrills and fireworks than ever. Here’s your quick guide to what to expect from a Sprint Race weekend.
01
What is an F1 Sprint Race?
The Sprint is a short and exciting race aimed at bringing even more entertainment to fans at the circuit and watching around the world. It consists of a 100km race – about one-third of a full Grand Prix distance – and lasts 30 minutes. To encourage overtaking and on-track action, there are eight points on offer for the winner, with the top eight drivers all scoring World Championship points. With no bonus point for the fastest lap in the Grand Prix for the 2025 season, the six Sprints are the only other opportunity to score extra championship points.
There’s no time for pit stops, which means its all down to the drivers' skills as they battle to overtake and secure the best position.
02
The origin story
The Sprint Racemade its first appearance during the 2021 F1 season, with first Sprint held at Silverstone followed by races at Monza and Interlagos. The goal was to add more competition and spectacle to the Grand Prix weekend, replacing a Free Practice session with a race. Qualifying was moved back to Friday and the finishing order in the Sprint determined the grid for Sunday.
The format was tweaked to replace another practice session with a quick quali format for the Sprint, dubbed the Shootout, and full qualifying session for Sunday’s race. The Shootout takes place on Friday afternoon, with the Sprint now taking place on Saturday lunchtime and full Quali restored to Saturday afternoon.
03
What happens during the Sprint Shootout?
The Shootout features three mini-sessions, like in standard qualifying, but with shorter session times of 12 minutes (SQ1), 10 minutes (SQ2) and eight minutes (SQ3). Having shorter sessions is intended to restrict cars to one run in each session, but the potential still exists to do two runs in SQ1 and possibly SQ2, even though the timings would be very tight and dependent on the circuit. On some tracks, that will be a moot point, because cars are only allowed to use one set of tyres in each Shootout session; medium compound in SQ1 and SQ2, soft compound in SQ3.
04
How does the weekend play out?
The changes to the format mean that the F1 Sprint weekend differs from a regular Grand Prix weekend. Here’s a day-by-day guide to what you can expect to see on the track:
- Friday AM: Free Practice
- Friday PM: Shootout
- Saturday AM: The Sprint
- Saturday PM: Qualifying
- Sunday PM: F1 Grand Prix
05
What points are up for grabs?
There are eight points for the winning driver, with points awarded to the first eight finishers. With the scrapping of the bonus point for fastest lap in the 2025 Grands Prix, there are 24 fewer points available for the drivers to score. That means the Sprint Race becomes the only opportunity for drivers to score extra World Championship points outside the main races. With strong teams vying for the front, the 2025 season is expected to be one of the closest in years, so prepare to see drivers going all out for maximum points on Saturday and Sunday.
Points in the Sprint Race are awarded as follows:
- P1: 8 points
- P2: 7
- P3: 6
- P4: 5
- P5: 4
- P6: 3
- P7: 2
- P8: 1
06
Where will I see an F1 Sprint?
There are six Sprint Race weekends during the 2025 F1 season.. The main criteria for choosing a circuit is that it must offer plenty of opportunities for overtaking, which means Austria's Red Bull Ring is frequently chosen – although not in 2025. Interlagos in Brazil is the only ever-present, having hosted a Sprint race every season since 2021. Austin and Qatar return for the third time, with China and Miami retained from 2024. The young format also returns to one of the oldest circuits on the calendar: the mighty Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium. At 7km, Spa is the longest track in F1 and offers numerous chances to overtake as the circuit undulates through the Ardennes.
07
Does the Sprint have an impact on Sunday's Grand Prix?
Sprint Race finishing order doesn't determine the grid for Sunday’s main event, but it can still have a bearing, mainly if a driver picks up a late grid penalty, or if the team needs to make major repairs after a crash. In that case, the driver has to start Sunday's main race from the pitlane.
The main effect is on strategy and setups, as the drivers and teams only have Friday practice to understand the circuit and work out what settings and tyre strategy to use for the weekend. Much of that work falls to the reserve driver back in the simulator.
08
Who has the best record in Sprint races?
Max Verstappen has dominated Sprint races in the same way he’s bossed the F1 World Championship, winning 11 of the 18 races to date. From the 2025 grid, Oscar Piastri is the next most successful with two wins, while Lando Norris and George Russell have one each.
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