Will Buxton throws shade on F1 sprint races, wants IndyCar to stay away from such “gimmicks”

The renowned F1 presenter Will Buxton recently moved to IndyCar ahead of the upcoming 2025 season. The campaign is slated to kick off on February 28 with the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg race weekend and amid this, Buxton has fired shots toward F1.

Formula 1, also considered the pinnacle of motor racing, has started supporting Sprint races on specific race weekends. These events have always received mixed reactions from fans and pundits and Buxton feels, it will be in the best interest of IndyCar if it stays away from them.

In line with this, the Briton had the following to add in response to a query by Pit Debrief during a media session on Tuesday:

"That's not an issue in IndyCar. There are so many passes that it is difficult to keep up with the action that is going on in IndyCar without the need to throw in any gimmicks like that. No, I just don't think it needs it, is the honest answer," Buxton was quoted as saying by Pit Debrief

Meanwhile, Buxton has moved to the highest class of open-wheel racing in America and has already become popular among the masses with his regular IndyCar posts.

Formula 1 brought Sprint races to 'spice things up' - Will Buxton

While Will Buxton has asserted that IndyCar does not need Sprint races, he also revealed why the events were implemented in F1. He believes F1 found it tough to make all the Grand Prix's interesting in recent years and thus, had to do something to "spice things up".

"Those kind of things were brought into Formula 1 to spice up the action, to try to bring an extra element of excitement to the weekend. I always liked the idea of reverse grid in Formula 1. I though the Sprint race should be completely reversed grid in championship order, so your person who was last in the championship starts first and then see the fast guys try and make their way through," Buxton was quoted as saying by Pit Debrief.

The highest class of open-wheel racing in America has been steadily growing as a sport. The 2024 season saw Chip Ganassi Racing driver Alex Palou secure his third world championship.

Moreover, he was given stiff competition by Andretti Global's Colton Herta. The 25-year-old missed out on the title by 31 points.

With the 2025 campaign just a few days away, the hype around the sport is huge. The drivers are putting the hard yards to be fully ready ahead of the first event and in line with this, the Team Penske drivers have made a major statement with their performance.

In the recent pre-season test at the Sebring International Raceway, Will Power put in the fastest lap with Josef Newgarden in a close second. The 2025 season could be an exciting watch as all drivers are looking to stamp their authority.