In exceptional rain conditions, there are situations in which the race direction may decide to complete the formation lap behind the Safety Car by imposing the use of extreme wet tyres.
However, as we also saw in the sprint race at Spa, the problem is that if the conditions are safe enough for the Safety Car to come back and the track is already too dry for full wet tyres, the drivers still have to wait before being able to return to the pits to change the tyres, with the risk of seeing contacts and unsafe releases in the pit lane due to confusion.
In fact, last month in Belgium half of the grid rushed to the pits to switch to the intermediates as soon as the Safety Car took the pit lane route, while the rest preferred to stay on track with the teams well aware of making two pit stops consecutive in that confusion could have generated further problems.
Drivers stopped in the pit lane during qualifying
Photo by: Erik Junius
In theory, however, nothing prevents the entire grid from returning, which almost happened on the occasion of a restart of the 2021 Hungarian GP. On that occasion, since it was a normal start, the FIA had not imposed a tire for the start but, not knowing the track conditions, all the riders had opted for the intermediate. Once it was realized that the track was ready to switch to slicks, all the drivers except Lewis Hamilton pitted for dry tyres, with the only Mercedes-Benz Briton lined up normally on the grid with intermediates.
However, the Zandvoort pit lane is also the narrowest of the season, so much so that even in qualifying we saw cars almost making contact as they were preparing to get back on track. To avoid mass pit stops at the same time, FIA race director Niels Wittich gave the option of starting the formation lap behind the Safety Car with intermediates “for safety and order of the event and due to the exceptional pit lane layout at this event”.
In the notes sent to the teams, the race director specified that if “the track conditions change in such a way that the wet weather tires are not suitable (i.e. the track conditions become too dry and/or there is no standing water) , the Clerk of the Course may require all competitors to use intermediate wet specification tires instead of wet tyres. This will be notified to all competitors via the official messaging system and sufficient time will be provided for competitors to fit the specification. intermediate”, reads the notes of the race director. The new procedure also applies to restarting behind the Safety Car after a red flag.
![Intermediate tyres](https://cdn-7.motorsport.com/images/mgl/2Qzov9OY/s1000/wet-tyre-in-the-pit-lane-1.jpg)
Intermediate tyres
Photo by: Glenn Dunbar / Motorsport Images
“I think it’s a good thing,” Charles Leclerc told Motorsport.com about the change. “It depends on the conditions, of course. But at the moment the intermediate tires are much faster than the full wets. If we were to start behind the Safety Car, you will see everyone in the pits on the first lap. It will be a much more dangerous situation if it happens on the first lap. So I think it’s a good choice.”
“The problem with the wet tire is that it only lasts one lap here. So everyone will want to go to the intermediate as soon as possible. I think it’s a good choice.”
Fernando Alonso also backed the change, noting that it was “a wise decision, so I certainly support it.”
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