F1 | FIA: new restrictions to avoid laps that are too slow in qualifying

The issue of controlling the speed of drivers on slow laps in qualifying has always been rather thorny, with regulations often revised to adapt to new situations. The objective is to ensure that drivers do not proceed too slowly on the track, with the risk of being an obstacle to others and creating safety problems, given the possible difference in speed compared to those chasing the time.

Over the past few years, FIA race director Niels Wittich has updated his weekend notes on several occasions to provide guidance on specific cases, such as the fact that drivers tended to proceed very slowly in pit lane in order to gain time to distance themselves from those in front. For this reason, after some episodes in free practice, overtaking in pit exits was prohibited in Abu Dhabi, but with the recommendation to maintain a fast pace so as not to disturb the other competitors.

On the eve of the 2024 Formula 1 World Championship, Wittich has once again updated the guidelines for the weekend with the aim of avoiding potentially dangerous encounters between two cars during official testing. This is not a specific change for the Bahrain weekend, but rather a new rule that will apply to the entire world championship.

Last year, the sport's governing body attempted to regulate the minimum pace by imposing a maximum time limit for drivers to respect between exiting and entering the pit lane, i.e. the first and second lines of the race. Safety Car. However, the reference time was counted exclusively between those two points, leaving the pace to be decided by whoever was in the cockpit, which however left room for particular scenarios.

Starting from this weekend, control over the pace during the lap will be increased, as each driver will have to respect a minimum delta not only in the space between the exit and entry of the pit lane, but also in the various microsectors that divide each of the FIA ​​LED signs scattered around the circuit. A procedure that similarly takes up the concept of the Virtual Safety Car, in which drivers must respect a minimum pace in each section of the track, not just on the entire lap.

According to the Federation, this should reduce the possibility of large speed differences occurring between cars that proceed slowly during qualifying and those that, instead, proceed at a slower pace. This procedure will also apply in the opening moments of the pit lane before the start of the sprint or race, in which the cars complete reconnaissance laps before lining up on the starting grid.

“For the safe and orderly conduct of the event, except in exceptional circumstances accepted as such by the stewards, to ensure that the cars are not driven unnecessarily slowly on any lap during and after the end of the qualifying session (including in-lap and out-lap) or during the reconnaissance laps when the pit exit is opened for the sprint or the race, the drivers must stay within or below the maximum time established by the FIA ​​control unit at least once in each marshall sector and from both the first and second Safety Car lines (a marshall sector is defined as the section of track between each of the FIA ​​light panels),” we read in the updated notes released by Wittich.

Charles Leclerc, Ferrari SF-24 in the pit lane

Photo by: Motorsport Images

“Any driver who exceeds the maximum time set by the FIA ​​control unit may be regarded as going unnecessarily slow.” Clearly, in the case of an infringement, the stewards will be notified, who will then have to verify the reasons that pushed the driver to proceed so slowly, as if to let other cars engaged in a qualifying lap pass.

If this new rule will be applied within the world championship, there are also specific changes for the event in Bahrain. To further safeguard the drivers, the race director has also issued new instructions on the behavior to be followed at certain points of the track.

“In the case of rapidly approaching cars, drivers must exit the racing line between turns three and four, between turns 10 and 11 and between turns 13 and 14 to avoid any difference in speed between the cars on the track on the ideal line” , we read in the notes. In this case Wittich is referring to the fact that, on the straights, the drivers engaged in a lap with a reduced pace will have to move to the side, leaving room for the approaching single-seaters.