Formula 1 and the solutions for a better championship.
With F1 taking its annual ‘Summer Break’, it’s a good time to reflect on the first half of the season and look to where the sport is heading. Will Buxton (@thebuxtonblog on Twitter) recently wrote a brilliant column entitled, ‘Matters of Perception’ after the 2016 British Grand Prix, discussing some of the decisions made and the perceptions it leave.
http://www.racer.com/more/viewpoints/item/132029-buxton-matters-of-perception
You’ll have to forgive me as I do not have the writing skill of Will, not am I blessed (that’s #blessed for Lewis Hamilton’s followers) with an editor who can stop me rambling. I imagine that he has the good decency to know when to stop writing and therefore doesn’t need an editor.
F1 is a sport where the rules seem to change from session to session. I am puzzled as to how anyone sitting in the grandstands (who aren’t privy to analysis and decoding of TV presenters/commentators) is supposed to keep up, but there have been some good changes and credit is due.
The Good
After a safety car start, once Charlie and his team are satisfied that conditions are safe to race, the field will line up on the grid for a standing start. Presumably this will take place where everyone is on the full ‘extreme’ wet tyres (which are mandatory in the event of a safety car start). You can also presume that at the end of the first lap, everyone will peel off to the pits for a fresh set of intermediate tyres, given how long the safety car stayed out for in Silverstone.
Radio communication from pit to car have been opened up and joy of joy there’s some personality back in the sport! Whether it’s Daniel Ricciardo joking about finding back markers tricky to lap or Fernando Alonso’s hilarious snippets to his engineers, I adore the fact that communication is flowing freely and we’re not left with drivers getting frustrated not being able to find the correct setting and ruining a good race (Lewis Hamilton in Baku as a prime example).
Another aspect that should be commended is the new ‘over the shoulder’ on-board camera. I’ve seen it most used on Nico Rosberg and Sebastian Vettel’s car, but it gives a really good view of the driver’s perspective. Plus you can clearly hear the engine note and the squeal of the tyres when they snatch a brake.
The new 2017 regulations are looming large and Pirelli have begun on track testing with a selection of teams, with old cars modified to have representative downforce. The consensus from an aesthetical perperspective is positive, with the wide rear tyres harking back to the late 80’s. A F1 car need to amaze people, even when it’s standing still, and this goes a fair way to achieve it.
However, for all the positive rules and regulation changes, there have been a few which leave you questioning the point and feeling that answering a question that hasn’t been asked.
The Bad
F1 in the modern era is a hybrid formula, with 160bhp provided by the electric systems and has provided huge results. From using a third less fuel than in the 2.4ltr V8 era to cover the same distance (albeit at a slower pace) is an achievement that shouldn’t be overlooked. With the wider tyres and increased downforce, (more on this later) the level of aerodynamic drag will rise. In order to combat this, you need more power. The powers that be have decided to achieve this by increasing the 100kg fuel allowance, as opposed to boosting the kinetic electric power train. For me, this sends out completely the wrong message. Why are the teams restricted to a 160bhp for their kinetic recovery systems? We’ve relied on internal combustion engines for over a century and we’re at the stage where we’re effectively sharpening the edge of the knife with diminishing returns on huge levels of investment. The area of potential growth in the hybrid system is immense, with advancements being made in the battery/motor sector seemingly everyday. You could argue that it turns into an arms race, with one team building a better unit that the rest and running away with the championship, but how is that different from how the teams spend today?
In addition, with all of the current engine manufacturers (save Ferrari) moving into pure electric road vehicles, shouldn’t the proclaimed ‘pinnacle of motorsport’ be leading this development charge? Developing immensely powerful electrical systems to give the drivers a boost like the turbo era of the mid 80’s, it would be fantastic. It’s safe to say that in the beginning there would be several retirements, but that can often make the race more interesting.
With a larger reliance on the power of an F1 car coming from electricity, there’s a greater emphasis on harvesting that power under braking or by lifting and coasting. With more power, the cars would be going faster and therefore have longer braking zones, which increases the chance of making an overtaking move stick. Daniel Ricciardo has commented quite recently that the racing would be improved if braking distances were longer as it’s the only real difference between the cars. However, we are a world away from fitting all the cars with steel brakes again.
With regards to engine manufacturers, is there anyone remotely interested in joining the likes of Mercedes, Renault, Honda and Ferrari? Not with the current formula, with developments restricted (in the effort to save cost) and the penalty for getting it wrong being on the savage end of the Red Bull Racing PR machine. With a renewed development drive into electric power, would it finally entice the likes of VW (who I imagine would be keen to promote/develop their electric car tech in light of their recent ‘Dieselgate’) into a sport with real road car relevance. It speaks volumes that two of their marques are in the World Endurance Championship with Audi and Porsche.
The Ugly
High costs will always be a feature of F1. There’s talks of independent championship for the teams not funded by a manufacturer, but there’s too much policital power to be lost by the ‘big’ teams. We constantly hear the struggles of the likes of Sauber who are constantly hunting for sponsors/investors. The business model moved (a long time ago) from hiring the quickest driver to the one with the biggest bank account. At some point you have to question, would they be better off in a different championship? The principles at the former Manor team (not to be confused with Manor Grand Prix) have jumped into the World Endurance Championship, and they are loving it! The budgets are much more manageable in LMP2, there can more drivers funding the business and the cars are all very similar in performance by design/regulation so everyone has a reasonable chance of winning.
Talk of cost caps will go on forever, but I can’t foresee that they will ever come to fruition. Max Mosely, (former President of the FIA) had a good suggestion of giving teams who stuck to a cost cap more technical freedom, in the shape of movable aero pieces. But for those teams who have the budget to keep spending astronomical budgets to maintain their place in the pecking order, they are less than keen to give up that status for an equal playing field. I do have a few suggestions that could shake up the established pecking order and promote ‘proper’ racing.
The Solution
Shift the Emphasis of Grip from Aerodynamic to Mechanical
Have less reliance on downforce, especially from the body work. Go back to the elegant aero of the early 90’s, but have the majority of the grip being mechanical grip from active suspension and the tyres. Active aero is becoming more prominent in road car design but it’s not being led in F1. DRS ‘Super Mario Flap’ is a gimmick to solve an inherent problem with modern single seater racing — the dirty air issue and cars not being able to follow closely. This dirty-air effect is more prominent than ever and there is nothing in the new 2017 regulations which addresses this key issue.
Speaking of Tyres
Having high degrading tyres is a call that came from the Overtaking Working Group to spice up the racing, increase the number of pit stops where the most amount of overtaking occurs with the dreaded ‘undercut’. But with an emphasis on mechanical grip, there isn’t a need for tyres that fall apart after 12 laps. It must be possible to create tyres which don’t grain up, shed kilograms of tread on the track and turn the optimum racing line a single car width. The penalty for going off line to make an overtake is huge, with a loss of grip which can take the next series of corners to clean up.
There is a trade-off to tyres which don’t degrade rapidly (take Super Formula for example), but those cars are still very aero dependant where the dirty-air issue is still prominent. By shifting the emphasis towards mechanical grip vs aero grip, cars are less disturbed and can follow each other closely without losing performance.
In Hockenhiem this year, Daniel Ricciardo set the fastest lap of the race with a time of 1.18.442. Whilst that is impressive compared to his contemporary rivals, it’s five seconds slower than the 1.13.780 Kimi Raikkonen set in 2004 with McLaren. Today’s fastest laps of the race are set during the last stint, where the cars are lightest due to lack of fuel. During the early stages, the intentional fragility of the tyres and fuel saving demand that you drive slowly to preserve the life of the tyres while the car it at its heaviest. Not pitting for fuel has been good for the sport, but a large amount of the lap time is down to the tyres. Pirelli were specifically tasked with creating tyres with a short life span (which I cannot fathom how this promotes good wear for their road-going offerings), but there is a large gulf in performance to the Michelin and Bridgestone rubber used in 2004.
Show the World what Hybrid Systems are really capable of
Remove the limit to hybrid power, give the drivers more horsepower than they can manage. As a result of going faster, the braking zones will be longer with the need to harvest more energy (through lift and coast). The multi-mega joule class in the World Endurance Championship has worked wonders, with the top LMP1 machines easily outputting more than 1250bhp. The speed in which they fire out of corners, especially past GT cars is seemingly comical.
Yes it’s becomes an arms race between the manufactures, but competition improves the breed and this tech will ultimately filter down to road cars. Today’s races see much of the first two thirds of the race being driven slowly, where drivers are constantly managing tyres and eking out fuel mileage and relying on strategy to move up the field. It can often become a case of ‘how slowly can you win a race’, although this has been exaggerated with Lewis’ speed once he hits the front in an effort to reduce the risk of his engine blowing up. Shift the power balance to predominantly come from the electric systems and let’s go racing like they do in the WEC where the legendary commentator @specutainment, John Hindaugh has to remind the listeners it’s not a 20 mins sprint but a 6 hour endurance event — it’s just that nobody had seem to tell the drivers!
With fantastic amounts of horsepower on tap, the weight of the driver is less of an issue. We see drivers shedding kilos to suit the demands of being a light as possible and teams favouring drivers of a smaller frame. In addition, more horsepower and grip through the corners will make the cars more physically demanding to drive. A more physically demanding car will increase the churn of drivers where the old guard don’t stick around until they are pushing 40 and make way for the stars of the younger formula to move up to the top flight.
Kimi loves them, but I’m not a fan.
Lets ban blue flags, especially if you’re going to keep qualifying the way it is. It’s not surprising that you sort out the fastest running order on Saturday and then wonder why nobody overtakes on a Sunday (unless they are out of position). To get a good race, you need to keep the pack close together. Make the leader race too, not just run off into the near distance and hide. At the moment, a driver is forced to move off the racing line, ruining thier tyres and whatever battle they were in. How are the small teams to advance to score points if they are losing seconds a lap moving aside to make way for the leaders.
Track Design and Limits
Modify circuits to promote side by side racing, good example would be Hockenheim’s series of corners from the hairpin to the stadium section, or Turns 4, 5 an 6 in Bahrain. This might be at the detriment to providing a challenge for the drivers, but it doesn’t help the show. The sport also needs to enforce track limits, the white lines define the race track. Run off areas are fine for cars who can recover and rejoin the race (and therefore improve the show). But if a car goes all four wheels over the line, it ought to be against the rules. The great drivers can keep to the confines of the track at the greatest speed possible. I can’t see the argument why this is currently allowed, the kerbs in Austria were great as they acted as a deterrent for cars going all four wheels off and frankly, driving a circuit they made up in their head. As soon as the drivers found out it was damaging their suspension, they quickly found out they could stay within the confines of the circuit.
A hard stance from the FIA and F1
All of the above require a change of tack from the governing bodies. The teams can no longer dictate the rules and have them changed every other session. It might appear to be a bit authoritarian, but if the teams and drivers don’t like it, go and find another championship. That’s not to say they shouldn’t be consulted when creating rules and regulations, but Charlie shouldn’t be pressured into changing the rules without very good reasoning. Safety is often the reason cited for changing rules, but every circuit that F1 visits is ‘Grade 1’ class in safety, and the cars are much slower than they were in 2004. I’m not one for putting drivers in danger, but when they are driving (at the start of the race) multiple seconds off the ultimate pace, it does question why we’re not going forward in this sport.
It’s even worse when new drivers who step into the sport are wondering why the field is driving so slowly, Max Verstappen recently the required pace like ‘driving like his grandma’. It’s completely sends out the wrong message and the commentators are left to make jokes to cover up fundamental issues with the sport.
All this is not to say that these thoughts are unique, almost every fan of the sport has a raft of ideas that would revolutionise the sport and give more teams a reasonable chance of challenging for podiums, race wins and ultimately the championship. I imagine there is too much political pressure applied by the top teams and too much red tape to get through to get some sensible decisions made.
I hope that it’s not too much longer than somebody takes a grip of the sport, shakes it up and uses some common sense.
