Jenson Button: "We need to attract a younger audience"

Jenson Button backs the idea that Formula One should introduce races of a shorter length in order to keep the viewer interested.

Recently there have been suggestions of shortening the race distance as there have been many complaints of boring racing.

Button thinks that it is important to make sure that F1 is still appealing to a young audience, and shortening the races could be a way to do it.

"There will always be the diehard fans that have watched Formula 1 for 10, 20 years and will watch a whole grand prix, but that’s not who we’re after," he said.

“It’s the younger fans we need to appeal to, to try to attract them to something for an hour and a half is very difficult.  People have a short attention span. We’re like kids, we can’t sit down and do one thing for so long – we have to move on and do something else."

“I can’t sit in front of the TV for an hour and a half and watch a film, I have to be active. It’s a tough one because Formula 1 is Formula 1, and changing that is a shame because that’s the way it has always been. But we need to move with the times if we want the sport to be relevant. When I watch Formula 1, I see a race that’s exciting."

“Other people might look at it and say ‘well there are a few overtaking moves, but in an hour and a half there is 10 minutes of action! That’s why I find it exciting, because when those moves happen it’s amazing that driver has put everything on the line. But 10 minutes of action in an hour and a half is not enough for most people, and I can understand that."

“Short races, short sports are on the up. For example, people love sprint track and field because it’s a short burst of energy."

“I’ve never watched a Tour de France stage [in cycling, which goes on for several hours], but I’ve recorded a Tour de France stage and watched the last 10 minutes."

“F1 needs to attract a younger audience, but how you go about doing that is a lot more difficult.”