the period of Formula 1 2023 is about to start, and it is necessary for everyone to be clear about the major technical changes and sporting regulations implemented for this year. In 2023 The rules that the cars changed a lot last year are kept, designed so that the aerodynamic base is the ‘ground effect’ of the single-seater and that the dirty air given off by the cars in the previous courses is very reduced to allow drivers to pursue each other and have longer fights. Despite this, this same regulation will have some variations that affected the work of the teams.
Today, the second year of the current regulations, which were created with the goal of more equalizing competition between large and small, will begin. and reduce distances over the years. It will be necessary to see if in the second year of maintaining the rules the cars will come closer in terms of times as seen in a very tight central zone in 2022.
1
ground height
The main technical change introduced is that which determines the ground height of the vehicles. Last year, everyone was surprised by the huge rebound experienced by all the cars from the beginning of the season, the so-called ‘porpoising’, something that in some cars caused many rebounds, even dangerous, with some drivers like Hamilton complaining of back pain. Finally, to prevent this from happening or to reduce this effect, the height of the center of the floor is raised by 15mm and its edge by 10mm. That means an aerodynamic reduction for everyone who has to work to compensate with the design of their single-seaters. In turn, this leads to an increase in the height of the diffuser.
The
Last year the FIA started to monitor that the rebound of the car does not exceed the set limit because it is dangerous. This year it will continue to do so and for this it will put an additional sensor. Those who do not follow what is allowed will be punished.
The
In this sense, to avoid suspicions and the teams have edges on the ground that bend down to get closer to the asphalt and have a greater load, the FIA needs more rigidity of the ends of the ground. Control in this matter will be stricter.
2
Increased head safety
After the massive accident suffered by Zhou Guanyu last year at Silverstone, where the Chinese driver’s car overturned several meters at high speed, an anti-roll bar broke that should not have failed and it was seen how the driver was saved thanks to ‘Halo’ , the FIA decided to act. This is done by forcing to increase the stiffness of the anti-roll bar, which is specifically designed to prevent impacting the driver’s head in the event of a rollover. This area has a new design, with a rounded edge to reduce the possibility of sinking in contact with the ground. This area is built with a material that is more resistant to abrasion and passes more stringent impact tests.
3
bigger glasses
Another change related to safety is that of the mirrors, which are larger than last year. These have been enlarged from 150mm x 50mm to 200mm x 60mm, with a 30% increase in the viewing area for the pilot.
4
Double the number of sprint races
F1 bet more on sprint races and this year from 3 to 6: Azerbaijan (Baku), Austria (Red Bull Ring), Belgium (Spa-Francorchamps), Qatar (Lusail), United States (Circuit of Americas) and Brazil (Interlagos). The sprint race format makes each day have a real impact on the results. That means it’s far from Fridays when rehearsals are free.
The
– Friday: Free Practice 1 and Qualifying session determining the short order of Saturday’s racing grid.
– Saturday: Libes 2 and Qualifying Race (determines the grid for Sunday and gives points for the top 8.
– Sunday: Race week
The
It is important to note that teams will have a fixed damage allowance of $300,000 per team per sprint race, up from $150,000 in 2022. This allows teams to be less afraid of breaking pieces and therefore less likely to take greater risks in these short races. .
The
In addition, the closed park will be more permitted during these appointments.
5
Two experiments for classification
F1 will also try an experiment with two qualifying this year to add to the excitement. This will be the same format as Q1, Q2 and Q3, but the difference is that only one type of tire will be allowed to be used in each session. The idea is to do Q1 only on hard, Q2 only on medium and Q3 only on soft. In these two events, the teams will only have 11 sets of tires available for the entire weekend (12 in the sprint races and 13 for the other races).
6
New word on incomplete races
The regulations for the points to be distributed when a race ends with a reduced number of laps have been redrafted, to avoid what happened in Japan 2022, when due to the race ending under the checkered flag, they shared the total points despite the fact. with fewer turns.
7
Changes in various circuits
The FIA has confirmed several updates and changes to the circuits for the upcoming season. For example, in Saudi Arabia, significant changes were made to improve visibility when cornering. In Azerbaijan and Miami, the runway will completely reappear. At Zandvoort, the space between the pit stop positions increased by 1.5m compared to last year. And in Qatar a new pit building and paddock infrastructure will be built. In Barcelona, the chicane is done and the mythical layout is brought back with a final fast entry corner that allows DRS to be stronger on the straight.
Regardless of all this, the FIA will make changes to several areas of DRS this season to “make overtaking easier or more difficult on certain circuits where it is considered insufficiently challenging.” These changes will be implemented in Bahrain, Jeddah, Melbourne, Baku and Miami, and will involve the adjustment of detection and trigger zones, and in Melbourne the fourth trigger zone will be restored.
8
Try DRS
In some races, the FIA wants to try a DRS experiment. The aim is to try to allow drivers to use DRS after a race lap and from the first lap on restarts from a standstill or on a restart after a ‘Safety Car’. At the moment this can only be done after the first two laps of the race at the start or on restarts. This will be reviewed in this year’s sprint sessions to introduce this change in 2024.
9
radio messages
The FIA approved “relaxing the regulation of radio messages between teams and drivers at all times during a competition.”
10
new hard tires
Pirelli has introduced a sixth type of rubber (hard) to have a wider range of possible choices for each GP, although it will continue to carry only three types of dry compounds per race. This new compound is slightly less stiff than the old C1.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Rose Herman and I work as an author for Today Times Live. My expertise lies in writing about sports, a passion of mine that has been with me since childhood. As part of my job, I provide comprehensive coverage on everything from football to tennis to golf.
