Is Formula 1 riding down a slippery slope?

Is Formula 1’s usage of sprint qualifying races ultimately going to lead to other changes that move the sport away from its roots?

Formula 1 debuted sprint qualifying racing ahead of the British Grand Prix at Silverstone Circuit, and it was met with mixed reviews.

Not to state the implied, but some who watched it liked it, and some who watch it didn’t — like any new thing in not just motorsport but in all of sport.

However, there was a contingent of fans who made up their minds before watching the 17-lap race around the 18-turn, 3.661-mile (5.892-kilometer) road course in Silverstone, Northamptonshire, United Kingdom that it was going to be atrocious, and not shockingly, they still hold that same opinion.

This was to be expected. Some fans don’t like change, and in some cases, you can’t blame them.

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Formula 1 went from never even awarding a single point for earning a pole position to determining the full starting lineup for a Grand Prix with a points-paying sprint race.

For the purists out there, this didn’t sit well, and what’s worse for them is the fact that two more sprint qualifying races are set to be used later in the 2021 season. Some fans — and even some drivers — have suggested that poles earned under this format should not be counted as poles earned using the typical qualifying format.

But what many of these fans dislike or even fear most is not the sprint qualifying format itself; it’s the fact that this could be a sign of even more change that continues to turn the sport into something that simply isn’t Formula 1.

As an example, before this sprint qualifying format debuted, there were suggestions of reverse grid qualifying races. While these races did not ultimately come to fruition, the very fact that the possibility was considered was alarming to some — as is the fact sprint qualifying racing did debut anyway, albeit in a more understandable form.

In 2019, Formula 1 already went back to awarding a point for fastest lap, a point that hadn’t been awarded since 1959.

In most cases, this point ends up having absolutely nothing to do with the race result. The case for having it is the fact that fastest laps are an official statistic with an official all-time list, all-time record, etc.

But poles and laps led also have all-time lists and all-time records, yet you don’t see Formula 1 awarding points for them (except, of course, poles under the new sprint qualifying rules — and second and third place qualifiers as well, in this case).

As far as “getting away from the roots” of Formula 1, these changes don’t necessarily do that. But in addition to a large percentage of the fanbase seeing these changes as somewhat gimmicky, the bigger question is this: what’s next?

Is Formula 1 on a slippery slope if sprint qualifying becomes a regular or even a semi-regular event on the schedule for a race weekend?

When does Formula 1 go on the NASCAR route and split the season up into a regular season and playoffs? When do they introduce stages (which would surely reignite the refueling debate, by the way), stage points, and playoff points? How long until we get the Chase for the F1 Rolex Cup?

Those are obviously extreme examples. Am I saying that any of this is even close to happening — or even has a chance to happen? No — and believe it or not, that’s coming from somebody who actually doesn’t mind the sprint qualifying races for select events.

We laugh now, but I’m sure in the 1980s and 1990s, the same was said for NASCAR, so I understand the concerns of those who aren’t in favor of the sprint qualifying racing and are more concerned about what other changes may be in store for Formula 1 in the future.

The next Formula 1 sprint qualifying race is scheduled to take place the day before the Italian Grand Prix at Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, the 14th of 23 races on the 2021 schedule. The sprint race is scheduled to take place on Saturday, September 11, and the race itself is scheduled to take place on Sunday, September 12.

Three races are on the schedule before then: the Hungarian Grand Prix at the Hungaroring (Sunday, August 1), the Belgian Grand Prix at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps (Sunday, August 29), and the Dutch Grand Prix at Circuit Zandvoort (Sunday, September 5).