One-hour quali sessions to return for 2006?

[Jack_Bauer]

www.gp2005.com are reporting that it is pretty much a one deal that F1 will be reverting to something like the old one-hour, 12-lap Saturday qualifying session. At last, the FIA are actually starting to listen to the teams and the fans and use some common sense. About bloody time!

Originally Posted by www.gp2005.com

After several attempts to alter the qualifying format in such a way that it would produce more excitement, the FIA has finally realized that the one lap format is just not working.

Already changed once this year due to constant complaining form the British media that it was a drama covering the second and final qualifying session on the Sunday morning, GP2005.com can now reveal that the format that was put in place at the Nurburgring, one flying lap per driver in just one session on Saturday afternoon, will only last until the end of the current season when a new, hopefully much improved, formula will be put into action.

The FIA and team bosses have all agreed, oddly enough, to return to a one hour session, and while they are yet to full decide on the format to be used in that hour, they are all in agreement that it can’t continue the way it is. While still unofficial at this stage, the one hour session has the most votes so far, however it isn’t expected to return to the way it was in 2002. Instead it is expected that we will see a few tweaks to the old 12 lap format that should help satisfy all teams and their sponsors while providing a good spectacle for the fans.

Each driver will carry out three or four sets of fast laps, on an empty fuel tank like they used to, but with one proviso, every driver MUST take to the track in the fist thirty minutes, and not leave it until the dying minutes to record their best times of the session.

While this was cause for heart stopping breathtaking moments, the rest of the session used to be quite dull and the smaller teams, such as Minardi and Jordan, failed to get any TV time, hence the one lap session currently in place.

The new format still needs to be finetuned, but one thing is clear, it is coming and once again fans will get to see their drivers put in passionate storming laps like they used to.

[BMW325]

eh, i kinda like the one-lap one-shot qualifying...i just wish they would let the cars do the runs on light fuel and not the race fuel...you dont really get to know for sure whos fastest just from qualifying

i wish i was old enough to remember the turbo cars running on max boost during qualifying

[Quiggs]

I loved the GP 12 lap qualifying style. It'll be good to see it come back.

[dydzi]

it's good to hear that it's back, all those earlier changes shouldn't have taken place at all

[Vindesh17]

finally going back to the way F1 is supposed to be.

[CHEESE-TACULAR]

do you guys smell that? smells like the turnaround of F1!
come back lotus, please

[Deckard]

Originally Posted by BMW325

eh, i kinda like the one-lap one-shot qualifying...

Congratulations.... of all the F1 web sites that I visit you are the first and sole person that like it!

[fpv_gtho]

This kind of removes one of the elements that made a good driver/car combo, the ability to get a fast time out of one lap, but i think for the most part, this doesnt punish stupid small mistakes as much

[SlickHolden]

Why cant they have 6 laps warm tyres fast lap. Come in do it 2 more times give you 3 shots at it and some time to set the car right, But still puts it on the driver to be better then the car and cold tyres