Liberty Media and the FIA have arranged an emergency meeting in Bahrain to try and solve the problems of overtaking seen in Australia and to try and undo the regulation agreement in place already for 2019.
Charlie Whiting, the doddering representative of the FIA rule makers, has approved regulation changes for the 2019 season but now Liberty have sounded a big alarm bell demanding a solution to the fact there were only 5 overtakes for the entire Australian Grand Prix. It seems only wholesale changes to the concept of the cars, most likely by employing ground effect downforce is again back on the agenda.
In the meantime a huge backpedal on the 2017 concept of more downforce = better F1 for the fans argument has begun. First up, the front and rear wings are to be addressed but any changes must be agreed upon before the 30th of April in order to affect the 2019 season. Any attempt to change regulation beyond this point will require unanimous agreement with the teams, something we can all imagine is rather unlikely. The clock is ticking…
On the table is an increase of the slot hole for the DRS, in the hope that further artificial overtakes will appease the new masters of F1, which it probably will. It is also likely we’ll see DRS zones removed and the system employed around the whole circuit.
The front wing will be made to be a simpler design with the total removal and banning of the upper cascade area. The hope being that the wing will be less susceptible to turbulent air following another car (sound familiar? Go look up 2009 area regulation by the overtaking working group).
And in a last ditch attempt to elicit a solution from the teams, engineers are welcome to offer up any more suggestions to the FIA for implementation before the end of the month.
The emergency should be the removal of the HALO. WTF…
Something needs to happen fast. If even Verstappen can’t overtake, like in Australia, it’s bad. There are plenty of “no overtake” circuits on the calendar. Basically, whoever has pole, has the only chance of winning unless some convoluted strategy like in Australia. Monaco used to be one of the very few circuits you couldn’t overtake. Now it’s almost half the circuits. Australia was horribly boring. I’m an ultra fan and I gas forwarded thru the entire race. Nothing interesting happened.
In 2011 15 of 19 races the winner came from the front row and 18 came from the first 2 rows. The only winner that came from outside of the first 2 rows was Button in the wet Canadian race. There hasn’t been much overtaking in F1 for years. What’s changed now? The clown show called Liberty Media who think there should be 15 passes and a lead change ever lap like NASCAR.
Might be worth getting the popcorn ready for…..Charlies bosses’ the legitimate folk with the claim to rules and regs for F1 up against the media folk with all the dollars striving to shape the sport the way they want it while masquerading as ‘promoter’….Jean Toad might be forced to sacrifice his doddering representative, even…..
We love in hope 😂
Yet again the rules and politics are better than the racing…after only one race FFS….its laughable
Free use of DRS within 1 second of the car in front. Will it be enough??? DRS effect size should be unregulated and up to the teams.
Hardly an emergency meeting when they are only talking about 2019. Can they change anything for this year?????
An emergency when a fast decision must be made to avert twice as much snooze fest racing. 2 years is a long time