(Reuters) – AlphaTauri team boss Franz Tost said Formula One should cut back its calendar to 18-20 races, as it otherwise risked fans losing interest in the sport.
The 2022 season is set to feature a record 23 races, one more than the unprecedented 22 rounds last year.
Liberty Media, which acquired the sport’s commercial rights in 2017, has spoken of expanding the schedule to 25 races.
“Last year, we were lucky because the races were very interesting, there were always fights, but we can’t expect that this will always be the case,” said Tost in a Q&A issued by the team following an online launch of its 2022 car on Monday.
“For me, the best number would be between 18 and 20 races because Formula One should be a premium product and we really should think about maybe reducing the number of races to keep it special.”
The 2021 season served up riveting action as seven-times world champion Lewis Hamilton and Red Bull rival Max Verstappen engaged in a year-long, battle-of-the-generations for the title.
The pair fought each other hard at most races, even colliding three times, and went into the season finale in Abu Dhabi tied on points. The title was decided on the last lap of the last race, with Verstappen passing Hamilton seven corners from the end after a controversial safety car call.
But the growing calendar has been a concern for teams.
Larger outfits have been able to rotate staff while smaller ones worry about the toll prolonged time away from home can take, the risk of burnout and high turnover.
Tost, whose team is based in Faenza, Italy, has in the past brushed those concerns aside.
“I think we all should be happy that we are in a position to be in Formula One and to have 23 races. And if someone doesn’t like it, then he should go,” he said last October.
On Monday, he made clear his call for a shorter calendar was not because of workload reasons.
“Personally, I am fine with 23 races or more, but this is not the question,” the Austrian said, describing the number as the “absolute limit.”
“The question is what’s best for the future of Formula One.”
The 2022 season is set to get underway in Bahrain on March 20.
(Reporting by Abhishek Takle; editing by Ed Osmond)
