Categories: F1 News, Reports and Race ResultsRegulations

Teams demand 2015 F1 qualifying format returns

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F1 teams have unanimously written to the FIA and Bernie Ecclestone to demand the 2015 qualifying format is reinstated.

The teams met on Thursday to discuss potential changes to the qualifying format following a meeting with Ecclestone, FIA president Jean Todt and a representative from Pirelli in Bahrain on Sunday. At Sunday's meeting, the idea of reverting to the 2015 qualifying format - something all the teams agreed upon - was not tabled as an option by Ecclestone and Todt.

At the time it was suggested the teams would analyse other potential qualifying formats which included an aggregate system. They would then meet on Thursday to discuss the proposals and deliver their unanimous backing for what they would like to see.

However, in an apparent act of defiance, the BBC reports the teams have agreed to demand the return of the 2015 format despite Todt and Ecclestone's lack of acceptance on Sunday.

The move leaves the qualifying format in limbo. If Todt and Ecclestone do not agree to the demands of the teams, the current elimination style qualifying system will remain in place. The teams' letter makes it clear that is not what they want to see.

One concession the teams have made in the letter is the proposal to test radical new qualifying ideas later in the season if the world championships have been decided.

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.