The classification of the Brazilian F1 GP has been postponed due to rain: it will be held on Sunday

The Classification of F1 Brazilian GPwhich will organize the starting grid for this Sunday’s race, had to be postponed due to the heavy rain that poured in Interlagos Circuit.

This Sunday’s race is scheduled for 6:00 pm (Spanish time) and the Qualifying is due to take place this Sunday before that race, although the timing has yet to be confirmed by F1 and the FIA.as they must fit within the planned program of support races held in Brazil.

“The FIA ​​is now making a final analysis to see what is the right time to do the ‘appropriate’ and we have to follow that plan. It is a big event and we have to maximize it within conditions that may be acceptable”said Stefano Domenicali, CEO of F1, in remarks on the championship’s official television.

These statements came just after a meeting with Hamilton in the paddock where Lewis, in front of the cameras, joked about wanting to go out on track. “I want to go out. Give us a better blanket (to warm the tires) and better rain tires and we’ll go out”he said between laughs. But Lewis knows better than anyone that it’s not a question of better or worse tires.

This is not the first time that a classification has been postponed to Sunday. This happened in Austin 2015, and it was then decided that if the qualification was not held on Sundaythe grid will be established in order of Friday’s Free Practice. The same thing also happened in Japan 2019the race against the clock was postponed so that it could be held 4 hours before the race.

Why can’t cars compete in heavy rain?

Many people may not understand that the fastest cars on the planet, with the world’s best drivers at the wheel, in the world’s most technological competition, cannot withstand so much rain. But it has an easy explanation.

Obviously, the drivers can ride their F1, even with many difficulties, but In today’s F1 the priority is safety, and competing in these conditions will put 20 drivers at risk.

Obviously, many will remember races and qualifying from decades ago in worse conditions. But at that time safety standards were lower or almost non-existent, something that was improved after many misfortunes. Comparing periods is always a mistake in these cases.

If only one car goes around at a time, maybe there is no problem. But to compete in Q1, with 20 cars on the track, drivers will have a lot of problems driving without visibility.

The tires are releasing too much water

In addition to the possible aquaplaning that pilots may experience due to the puddles that accumulate in various areas (especially in turns 4 and 12) of a track full of ups and downs, one One of the main reasons that keeps it from competing is none other than the enormous capacity of Pirelli’s extreme rain tires.

It may sound like a contradiction, but the good performance of rain tires, paradoxically, prevents good visibility.

The rain tires work in an extraordinary way, evacuating 85 liters/second of water at a speed of 300 km/h, which creates a ‘spray’ of water behind each car that makes it impossible for drivers behind to see something.

And without visibility, the risk is enormous. For example: if a car stops in the middle of the railway, the danger for drivers will be severe because the possibility of a serious accident can occur. Drivers coming from behind may not be able to see the stopped vehicle and the end could be fatal.

That’s why many people ask the following question: What are rain tires for if you can’t handle these conditions?

Here we should add that Sao Paulo’s asphalt is new and has never been used before. That is, if it rains, the bitumen can come off the surface and therefore the rink can be the closest thing to a skating rink.as seen in several attempts made by the ‘Safety Car’ on the track to check if it can compete or not.

A solution, when?

The FIA ​​is working on finding a solution in the future to reduce the ‘spray’ raised by the cars and so that the F1 cars can compete in extreme rain conditions (they can compete when the conditions is for intermediate tires). The peak international organization tested a rain ‘kit’ with covers on the tires but that project was quickly scrapped as it did not have the desired effect.. So, the FIA ​​is back to square one, so there seems to be no short-term solution to these situations.

Without light it is impossible to go out

Furthermore, starting at 6:00 pm (Brazilian time), it can no longer be driven Interlagos due to the lack of sunlight. This means that, as that time approaches, the FIA ​​will have to make a decision to postpone qualifying so that it will be held this Sunday before the race.

“It’s not the first time we’ve had a similar situation,” said Mario Isola, Pirelli’s head of F1. “In Japan a few years ago (2019), and qualy was moved to Sunday morning. The problem is that tomorrow it will rain again. The problem here is that there are many ups, downs and compressions. They have done the best possible to avoid the rivers, but the The race director doesn’t have the confidence to let them start in these conditions,” added Isola before confirming the postponement of the classification, highlighting that it will not stop raining.

“After 6 pm you cannot run because there is no light. The situation is complicated but there is an option to move the qualy tomorrow morning,” he noted. And so, although now we need to know the exact time. To add more spice to the matter, this Sunday there is a high chance of rain from early morning, with 85% for most of the morning and afternoon.