F1 | Baku: DRS zone extended to facilitate overtaking

In recent years, the FIA ​​has continued to review the length of the DRS zones, in an attempt to find the right balance. Often, the governing body has reduced or extended the scope of the areas in which the movable wing can be used, mainly to adapt the various zones to the introduction of ground effect cars.

Last year the FIA ​​briefly experimented with reducing the length of the DRS zones at some circuits, but the result was not as hoped, as drivers immediately complained that it had become too difficult to overtake. This was also seen at Spa before the summer break, where the activation zone of the mobile wing was shortened, resulting in negative opinions from the drivers.

On the contrary, just a few weeks ago in Monza, given the difficulties in completing the attack maneuvers at the first braking point encountered in previous years, the governing body had decided to lengthen the area in which it was possible to activate the mobile wing on the main straight, extending it by 103 meters. An addition that effectively made overtaking easier compared to 2023, increasing the exchanges of position even in advance of the braking zone of the first braking point.

After registering the complaints of the drivers last season at the end of the Azerbaijan GP, ​​when they underlined how overtaking had become extremely difficult, the FIA ​​has decided to once again modify the length of the DRS zone on the main straight, extending it by 100 metres.

While the detection point, i.e. the point at which it is established whether the car following is less than a second behind the one in front, has remained unchanged, the DRS activation point has been brought forward to 347 metres after the final bend compared to 447 metres last year. A small change has also been made to the second DRS zone, the one that starts after the second bend, as it has been shortened by just two metres.

The FIA ​​hopes that with this change, the number of overtaking manoeuvres under braking at Turn 1 will increase, especially considering that the cars will not be using loaded boulder wings, but rather compromises to try not to lose too much time on the straights.