Remember when Max Verstappen threatened to quit Formula 1? No? Here’s what happened. F1 introduced three Sprint weekends in 2021 which added another competitive session to a race weekend—a 100km race called the Sprint. Because of how well they were received, F1 held them in 2022 as well. And in 2023, not only have they been increased to six, but there’s also been a format change with teams getting only one practice session. When Verstappen heard about the changes, he said, “I’m happy with just the main race. I think that’s way better for the excitement. Naturally, of course, I hope that there won’t be too many changes. Otherwise, I won’t be around for too long.” But while the reigning world champion feels that way, his 2021 rival begs to differ.

F1 is heading into its final race weekend before the summer break, and it’s at a driver- and crowd-favorite venue, Spa-Francorchamps. The Belgian circuit is the longest track on the calendar, but it’s also one of the fastest. And with ample opportunities to overtake, F1 decided to host a Sprint weekend at Spa this season. This being Verstappen’s favorite circuit, he might not be too happy about the Sprint here, but Lewis Hamilton sure is.

In the drivers’ press conference on Thursday, Hamilton, Kevin Magnussen, Esteban Ocon, Sergio Perez, and Valtteri Bottas were in the same slot. The Sprint format came up during the interview, and Magnussen didn’t hesitate to answer. As per Motorsport Turkey’s tweet, he said, “Sprint creates excitement.” [Translated by Google] Ocon added, “It’s good to try this at the Spa.” Hamilton chipped in and said, “I agree with them,” and like dominoes falling, Peres and Bottas said, “I agree with Lewis,” and “I agree with Perez.”

Read More: Despite Max Verstappen’s Threats to Quit After Recent Format Changes, F1 Boss Refuses to Intervene to Curb His Freedom

It’s evident that most drivers aren’t opposed to Sprints like Verstappen is, especially not Hamilton since it gives him (and every other driver) double the chances of scoring points. Considering Hamilton’s lowly P18 start during the last Sprint in Austria, he hopes for a better result this time. And despite winning the Sprint in Austria, Verstappen still hasn’t warmed up to the increasing number of races, and he reiterated it a few weeks ago.

Max Verstappen expressed his disregard for the 2024 F1 calendar

A few weeks ago, F1 released its 2024 race calendar featuring 24 venues the circus will travel to between February and December. This came only a few days after he mentioned how opposed he was to the format changes regarding the Sprint weekend. With six of them this year, F1 will practically have 28 races this season, and with 24 races next year—and the Sprint weekends set to continue—there will be 30 races. In light of all this, Verstappen threatened to retire once again.

He said, “It is too many [races] for me, but we just have to deal with it. I think it is a bit more logical the way that it is planned. But more things will have to come together for me to make my mind up over whether I stay longer [than 2028] or not. But I think that these things are definitely not helping for sure.”

When it comes to Sprint weekends, are you on Team Verstappen or Team Hamilton?

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