Monaco set to become one of 10 record sprint weekends in 2027 F1 calendar

[p]The championship will start at the Sakhir circuit on ‌March 14, after February 24-27 testing in the Gulf kingdom, with Saudi Arabia the second round on March 21, Formula ‌1 and the governing FIA said.[/p][p][b]Portugal (June 20) and Turkey (October 3) are additions with the ‌Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort and Barcelona having dropped off.[/b][/p][p]There were no asterisks against the four races ‌in the Gulf but they will remain uncertain for as long as the current ‌conflict in the region continues.[/p][p]Saudi Arabia's race in Jeddah was cancelled this year while Bahrain's has been rescheduled to Malaysia's Sepang circuit next month.[/p][embed guid="31392033-d7dd-4e2f-a474-fd83dad0f782" url="https://x.com/F1/status/2100162781727039725" social-type="twitter" /][h2]Sprint means two qualifying sessions in Monaco[/h2][p]The inclusion of a Monaco sprint race will ‌surprise some, given that overtaking is almost impossible around the ⁠principality's harbourside layout.[/p][p]Qualifying is usually the most exciting ‌point of the Monaco weekend, with the race often a procession and won from pole position, and ​Formula 1 highlighted the fact that spectators would now get two qualifying sessions as well as the showcase grand prix on Sunday.[/p][p][b]Replacing Friday's second practice session with sprint ​qualifying should increase the excitement on the first day of track action but it will also give drivers significantly less time to work their way into the weekend at a particularly ⁠unforgiving track.[/b][/p][p]A Saturday sprint victory is ​worth eight points to the winner, meaning a driver can come away from the weekend with a maximum of 33 rather than the usual 25 if he wins both.[/p][embed guid="a999dd4d-04e0-4aae-ba9c-ec87369abed0" url="https://x.com/F1/status/2100150195778400367" social-type="twitter" /][p]The 2026 season featured six sprints, the most to date, but Formula 1 chief executive Stefano Domenicali said in August ‌that the number would be increased because so many circuits wanted one since the format was introduced in 2021.[/p][p]Formula 1 said its data showed total viewership of sprint weekends was 12% higher than non-sprint weekends, with qualifying three times more popular with fans than free practice.[/p][p][b]Bahrain's Sakhir circuit, Australia (Melbourne), Japan (Suzuka), Monaco and Abu Dhabi (Yas Marina) will all host sprints for the first time.[/b][/p][p]Returning sprints will be Canada (Montreal), Britain (Silverstone), Italy (Monza), Brazil (Interlagos) and Qatar (Lusail).[/p][p]That means three of the first four rounds will be sprints, as well as three of the last four.[/p][p][b]"We are thrilled to welcome Portugal and Turkey to the championship and to expand sprint racing to 10 events, giving our ‌fans even more intensity, drama and the wheel-to-wheel action that makes our sport so special," [/b]​said Domenicali.[/p][p]Australia (April 4), Japan (April 11) and China (April 18) will form a triple-header on successive ‌weekends before Miami stands alone on May 2 with Canada and Monaco following on May 23 and June 6.[/p][p]Azerbaijan (September 26), Turkey (October 3) and Singapore (October 10) form another triple-header with Austin (October 24), Mexico (October 31) and Brazil (November 7) lining up as the third.[/p][p][b]Next season is due to end later than this year with successive sprint weekends in Qatar (December 5) and ⁠Abu Dhabi (December 12).[/b][/p][p]This year's final race is scheduled ⁠for Abu Dhabi on December 6, ‌although it could be rescheduled to Italy's Imola circuit for the same date.[/p]