Red Bull chief Christian Horner has expressed his concern over the new sprint race format debuting at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, with Williams boss James Vowles predicting ‘mayhem’ in Baku this weekend.
Horner has been strongly opposed to the sprint format coming to Azerbaijan due to the unpredictable nature of the circuit and potential impact on teams’ budgets, with the cost cap more of an issue than ever before. And there are still issues to be ironed out.
“The reality is it’s absolutely ludicrous to be doing the first sprint race of the year at a street race like Azerbaijan,” Horner said. “But I think from a spectacle point of view, from a fan point of view, it’s probably going to be one of the most exciting sprint races of the year.
“From a cost gap perspective, all you can do is trash your car and it costs a lot of money around there. One race is enough in Baku, so to have two – there could well be some action there,” Horner said.
Vowles has also warned of the difficulties involved and revealed there the new rules are yet to be ratified as team bosses continue talks with F1 officials.
“Irrespective of whether the rules change or not, a sprint race weekend at that tight, twisty track where you go through the castle section is going to cause a little bit of mayhem. There’s going to be difficulties,” he told the team’s official website.
