While the 2026 season is far from being on the knife’s edge with Kimi Antonelli utterly dominating the charts with a huge advantage on the points tally, talks have already begun on what the next season might bring for the sport. And while the menacingly fast young Italian is yet to bag the world driver’s championship this year, here’s a perspective for 2027 that could offer something to the next driver’s world championship.
And it’s concerned with the addition of yet another sprint racing round, this time to Monaco, that’s going to offer yet another racing opportunity and hence, also a point scoring one for the 22 drivers and thus, the teams, in effect. But while it’s one thing to go racing, having yet more time on our hands for a weekend to see cars go wheel to wheel a particular weekend, it also then means more work for the F1 drivers. Isn’t it?
And expressing a measured sentiment on these very lines, McLaren’s 2025 world champion Lando Norris, one of the finest and most committed drivers on the track, had exclaimed why Monaco in 2027 is going to be interesting. And that’s, of course, with the sprint racing weekend that fans have on their hands to witness.
Here’s what he shared-
“I guess the main thing is that means you’ve got FP1, [sprint] qualifying on Friday — which is the challenge,” the McLaren driver told media.
But he would also further add, “Obviously not a lot happens in a race on Sunday or in the sprint, but the challenge is just one practice session straight in, which has probably never happened before in Monaco.”
Having said that, one feels that Norris isn’t far from expressing what is a balanced assessment of the new addition of the sprint race to the famed Principality. Which is because of the fact that it’s definitely more work for the 22 drivers out there and that too, on a track where even the best at times falter and lose out on point scoring.
Monaco with its constricted layout has scant regard for mistakes and reserves the win only for that exclusive talent who practices clean race craft there being absolutely no margin for error.
While sprint does offer the added advantage to score points, it’s not always easy for drivers to contest for the same on tracks that contain fewer overtaking chances. In that regard, Monaco and the sprint race being hosted next year there is going to be harsh on the drivers despite the added chance to collect some points.
