A Grand Prix Weekend

The Format

Let’s zoom out of the action for a moment and get the format down.

There are 24 races this season. The majority follow this basic structure:

FRIDAY - FP1 and FP2
SATURDAY - FP3 and qualifying
SUNDAY - race

But what does that even mean…

FREE PRACTISE (FP1,2,3)

This is each team’s chance to test their cars on track. FP1 is the first time the drivers get a feel for the car since the previous race. The team will gather data on car performance, track conditions, tyre feel etc. It’s also a chance to get to grips with any updates that have been added between races, or any fixes to damage from a previous race. Teams can send their cars out for as many or few laps as desired within the 1 hour practise time. They have 3 of these 1 hour practises across the weekend, with FP3 the last one before qualifying.

* TYRE RULE: 2 sets of dry tyres must be handed in by each team after each practise session - so you might as well get your car out there and burn some rubber*

QUALIFYING

This decides the grid positions for the race. It’s split into 3 sessions: Q1,Q2,Q3. In Q1 drivers have 18 minutes to set their fastest time on track. The slowest 5 are out and make up P16-20 on the grid. In Q2 the remaining cars have 15 minutes to do the same, with the slowest 5 making up P11-15. In Q3 they have 12 minutes and this decides the top 10 positions.

*KEY TERMS*
OUT LAP - car comes out the pits, starts building up speed and warming up tyres FLYING LAP - car puts in a fast, timed lap for the leaderboard
IN LAP - car cools down and comes back into the pits

RACE

Sunday is the big day. Cars line up on the grid in their qualifying positions. They do a formation lap - this is where you’ll see them weaving to get heat into their tyres. Back in their positions for a standing start. 5 red lights will turn on one by one. Lights turn off and they’re away.

*POINTS: If you finish in the top 10 you are awarded the following points
P1 - 25, P2 - 18, P3 - 15, P4 - 12, P5 - 10, P6 - 8, P7 - 6, P8 - 4, P9 - 2, P10 - 1
these go towards the drivers’ and constructors’ championship*

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And then sometimes it’s completely different…

Sprint Weekends

6 of the Grand Prix weekends have a slightly different format owing to an additional sprint race, including - China, Miami, Austria, Texas, Brazil and Qatar.

Weekend format:

FRIDAY - FP1 and sprint shootout
SATURDAY - sprint and qualifying
SUNDAY - race

SPRINT SHOOTOUT

This replaces FP2 on the Friday. It decides the grid positions for the Sprint. Same Q1,2,3 format but shorter - 12 minutes for Q1, 10 for Q2 and 8 for Q3.

SPRINT

A 100km speedy dash with no pitting required, usually lasting about 30 mins. It replaces FP3 on Saturday. Championship points are awarded for the top 8 as follows:
P1 - 8, P2 -7, P3-6, P4 - 5, P5 - 4, P6 - 3, P7 - 2, P8 - 1.

And that’s it! Simple. Sort of…