Beginner's Guide to an F1 Sprint Weekend

Learn everything you need to know before watching a Formula 1 Sprint weekend, including the locations, number of laps & more.

How many F1 Sprint races are there?

In the 2025 F1 season, there is a total of six Sprint races.

Which tracks host the F1 Sprint?

The six races which host an F1 Sprint weekend are: China, Miami, Belgium, USA, Brazil and Qatar.

View the Formula 1 calendar in full here.

Why are these tracks chosen to host the sprint races?

The circuits selected to host an F1 Sprint weekend have been chosen for their abundant overtaking opportunities and characteristics which encourage flat-out racing.

Why isn’t there a sprint race on every F1 weekend?

Monaco is a prime example of a couple of the F1 races on the calendar where overtaking opportunities at a premium, and therefore a Sprint race would not be as entertaining as intended.

The FIA outlined upon the unveiling of the concept that they would not be running a Sprint race at every Grand Prix as it would hinder the quality of the product.

How does an F1 Sprint work?

An F1 Sprint is essentially a short race where competitors race flat out in a bid to achieve victory.

A Sprint qualifying session is used to determine the grid for the race.

How many laps is an F1 sprint race?

A Sprint race covers a total of 100km, which is roughly one-third of a typical Grand Prix distance.

The Chinese GP sprint, for example, was 19 laps, which is just over a third of the 56-lap Grand Prix distance.

The Sprint should last about 30 minutes.

Does the F1 Sprint race replace the Grand Prix?

No, the Sprint is a standalone feature which accompanies the Grand Prix and has no bearing on it.

The layout of a Sprint weekend is slightly different, which we will go into more detail below.

What is the layout of an F1 sprint weekend?

Although the overall layout is different, a Sprint weekend is still a three-day affair which culminates with the Grand Prix.

Practice sessions

On a Sprint weekend, two of the practice sessions are deleted and replaced.

A Sprint qualifying session replaces FP2 on Friday to set the grid for the Sprint. Saturday sees the Sprint itself replace FP3, before qualifying for the Grand Prix happens as normal later that day.

How do the sprint practice sessions work?

Free Practice 1 remains unaltered. However, given the absence of FP2 and FP3, there is additional pressure on the drivers and teams to find the right set-up in the allotted time.

Sprint qualifying

How does sprint qualifying work?

Taking place on Friday, Sprint qualifying adopts the same format of Grand Prix qualifying and is split into three stages.

SQ1 lasts 12 minutes, SQ2 is 10 minutes and SQ3 provides only eight minutes for drivers to complete their fastest lap.

Like in Grand Prix qualifying, the five slowest drivers are eliminated at the end of SQ1 and SQ2 before the remaining 10 battle it out for pole position in SQ3.

Grand Prix qualifying

Qualifying takes place later on Saturday, and is split into Q1, Q2 and Q3 which last 18 minutes, 15 minutes and 12 minutes respectively.

The five slowest drivers are eliminated after Q1, before five more drop out from Q2 and the ten remaining drivers compete in Q3 to determine the top 10 grid slots for Sunday's Grand Prix.

Grand Prix

The pinnacle of the race weekend, a Grand Prix is held over a minimum distance of 305 kilometres as drivers compete for previous championship points.

How many points are awarded to the winner of an F1 sprint race?

The winner of an F1 sprint will receive eight points.

Second place will claim seven points, while the driver who rounds off the podium in third will take six points.

View the full F1 sprint points allocation.

Why did they introduce sprint races?

Sprint races were introduced to produce faster, more frenetic on-track action.

By increasing the number of competitive track sessions, Formula 1 feels it's enhanced the appeal of a Grand Prix weekend to fans and improved its value for money.

Does the sprint race affect the Grand Prix?

As previously mentioned, the Sprint is designed to be a standalone event with no bearing on the Grand Prix.

However, there are some circumstances where the outcome of a Sprint race could impact action on a Sunday.

Penalties

A driver picking up a penalty in the Sprint that can’t be served immediately, will serve it in the Grand Prix on Sunday.

Car damage

A team is allowed to repair crash damage without penalty, as long as they use like-for-like parts.

However, if a Sprint crash is sufficiently severe that the team needs to change the chassis, then the driver will automatically start the Grand Prix from the pit lane.

Read our comprehensive F1 Beginner's Guide

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