The real problem is that there are only 20 cars on the gird instead of 26.
and I blame Max Mosley for this debacle and the continued bullishness of the FIA (and some teams) for the lack of additional seats.

1. Max Mosley's ill-conceived attempt to blackmail new teams with cosworth engines to force some sort of single engine series
2. The current FIA for a lack of vision and greed in denying teams entry into F1 with some ridiculous admission fee, and dubious vetting system, along with a cumbersome and futile process for entry. also making it hard for privateer teams to enter. And being beholden to mercedes and ferrari in too many uncomfortable ways.
3. Other teams who don't want to revenue share in a short sighted decision. Not understanding that if the sport grows, more money comes in, and thus more profit for everyone.

We should have 6 more seats on the grid, or at the very least 4 more.
Why we don't, is a failure from everyone. And that is the reason we are in this current situation where the top league fields one of the smallest grids in a top racing category.
MotoGP was heading down this road and made corrections. LMP1 faced and even more dire situation and took steps to correct it.
But yet, F1 remains stubborn and arrogant.

There are at least 2 F2 teams that could and should make the leap to F1 with proper assistance by the FIA, and as a reward to their commitment to the sport as a whole