Formula One

Formula One (also Formula 1 or F1 and officially the FIA Formula One World Championship) is the highest class of single-seat auto racing that is sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been the premier form of racing since the inaugural season in 1950, albeit other Formula One races were regularly held until 1983. The “formula”, designated in the name, refers to a set of rules, to which all participants’ cars must conform. [Two] The F1 season consists of a series of races, known as Grands Prix (from French, meaning grand prizes), held worldwide on purpose-built F1 circuits and public roads.

The results of each race are evaluated using a points system to determine two annual World Championships, one for drivers, one for constructors. The racing drivers are required to be holders of valid Super Licences, the highest class of racing licence issued by the FIA. [Trio] The races are required to be held on tracks graded one (formerly A), the highest grade a track can receive by the FIA. [Three] Most events are held in rural locations on purpose-built tracks, but there are several events in city centres across the world, with the Monaco Grand Prix being the most well-known.

Formula One cars are the fastest road course racing cars in the world, owing to very high cornering speeds achieved through the generation of large amounts of aerodynamic downforce. Formula One cars race at speeds of up to approximately three hundred seventy five km/h (233 mph) with engines presently limited in spectacle to a maximum of 15,000 rpm. The cars are capable of lateral acceleration in excess of six g in corners. The cars are very dependent on electronics, albeit traction control and other driving aids have been banned since 2008, and also on aerodynamics, suspension, and tyres. The formula has radically evolved and switched through the history of the sport.

While Europe is the sport’s traditional base, and hosts about half of each year’s races, the sport’s scope has expanded significantly and an enlargening number of Grands Prix are held on other continents. F1 had a total global television audience of four hundred twenty five million people during the course of the two thousand fourteen season. [Four] Grand Prix racing began in one thousand nine hundred six and became the most popular type internationally in the 2nd half of the twentieth century. The Formula One Group is the legal holder of the commercial rights. [Five]

With the cost of designing and building mid-tier cars being of the order of $120 million, [6] Formula One’s economic effect and creation of jobs are significant, and its financial and political battles are widely reported. Its high profile and popularity have created a major merchandising environment, which has resulted in large investments from sponsors and budgets in the hundreds of millions for the constructors. Since two thousand the sport’s spiralling expenditures and the distribution of prize money favouring established top teams have compelled complaints from smaller teams and led several teams to bankruptcy.

On eight September two thousand sixteen it was announced that Liberty Media had agreed to buy Delta Topco, the company that controls Formula One, from private equity rock-hard CVC Capital Fucking partners for $Four.Four billion in cash, stock and convertible debt. [7] On twenty three January two thousand seventeen it was confirmed that Liberty Media had finished its $8 billion acquisition of Delta Topco. [8]

Contents

The Formula One series originated with the European Grand Prix Motor Racing (q.v. for pre-1947 history) of the 1920s and 1930s. The formula is a set of rules that all participants’ cars must meet. Formula One was a fresh formula agreed upon after World War II during 1946, with the very first non-championship races being held that year. A number of Grand Prix racing organisations had laid out rules for a world championship before the war, but due to the suspension of racing during the conflict, the World Drivers’ Championship was not formalised until 1947. The very first world championship race was held at Silverstone, United Kingdom in 1950. A championship for constructors followed in 1958. National championships existed in South Africa and the UK in the 1960s and 1970s. Non-championship Formula One events were held for many years, but due to the enlargening cost of competition, the last of these occurred in 1983. [9]

Comeback of racing Edit

The very first World Championship for Drivers was won by Italian Giuseppe Farina in his Alfa Romeo in 1950, narrowly defeating his Argentine teammate Juan Manuel Fangio. However, Fangio won the title in 1951, 1954, 1955, 1956, and one thousand nine hundred fifty seven (His record of five World Championship titles stood for forty five years until German driver Michael Schumacher took his sixth title in 2003), his streak interrupted (after an injury) by two-time champ Alberto Ascari of Ferrari. Albeit the UK’s Stirling Moss was able to challenge regularly, he was never able to win the world championship, and is now widely considered to be the greatest driver never to have won the title. [Ten] [11] Fangio, however, is remembered for predominant Formula One’s very first decade and has long been considered the “Grand Master” of Formula One.

This period featured teams managed by road car manufacturers Alfa Romeo, Ferrari, Mercedes-Benz, and Maserati; all of whom had competed before the war. The very first seasons were run using pre-war cars like Alfa’s 158. They were front-engined, with narrow tyres and 1.5-litre supercharged or Four.5-litre normally aspirated engines. The one thousand nine hundred fifty two and one thousand nine hundred fifty three world championships were run to Formula Two regulations, for smaller, less powerful cars, due to concerns over the paucity of Formula One cars available. [12] When a fresh Formula One, for engines limited to Two.Five litres, was reinstated to the world championship for 1954, Mercedes-Benz introduced the advanced W196, which featured innovations such as desmodromic valves and fuel injection as well as enclosed streamlined bodywork. Mercedes drivers won the championship for two years, before the team withdrew from all motorsport in the wake of the one thousand nine hundred fifty five Le Boy’s disaster. [13]

The Garagistas Edit

The very first major technological development, Bugatti’s re-introduction of mid-engined cars (following Ferdinand Porsche’s pioneering Auto Unions of the 1930s), occurred with the Type 251, which was unsuccessful. Australian Jack Brabham, world champ during 1959, 1960, and 1966, soon proved the mid-engined design’s superiority. By 1961, all regular competitors had switched to mid-engined cars. The Ferguson P99, a four-wheel drive design, was the last front-engined F1 car to come in a world championship race. It was entered in the one thousand nine hundred sixty one British Grand Prix, the only front-engined car to contest that year. [14]

The very first British World Champ was Mike Hawthorn, who drove a Ferrari to the title during the one thousand nine hundred fifty eight season. However, when Colin Chapman entered F1 as a chassis designer and later founder of Team Lotus, British racing green came to predominate the field for the next decade. Including Brabham, Jim Clark, Jackie Stewart, John Surtees, Graham Hill, and Denny Hulme, British teams and Commonwealth drivers won twelve world championships inbetween one thousand nine hundred sixty two and 1973.

During 1962, Lotus introduced a car with an aluminium-sheet monocoque chassis instead of the traditional space-frame design. This proved to be the greatest technological breakthrough since the introduction of mid-engined cars. During 1968, Lotus painted Imperial Tobacco livery on their cars, thus introducing sponsorship to the sport. [15] [16]

Aerodynamic downforce leisurely gained importance in car design from the appearance of aerofoils during the late 1960s. During the late 1970s, Lotus introduced ground-effect aerodynamics (previously used on Jim Hall’s Chaparral 2J during 1970) that provided enormous downforce and greatly enlargened cornering speeds. So fine were the aerodynamic compels pressing the cars to the track (up to five times the car’s weight), utterly stiff springs were needed to maintain a constant rail height, leaving the suspension virtually solid, depending entirely on the tyres for any petite amount of cushioning of the car and driver from irregularities of the road surface. [17]

Big business Edit

Beginning in the 1970s, Bernie Ecclestone rearranged the management of Formula One’s commercial rights; he is widely credited with converting the sport into the multibillion-dollar business it now is. [Legitimate] [Nineteen] When Ecclestone bought the Brabham team during one thousand nine hundred seventy one he gained a seat on the Formula One Constructors’ Association and during one thousand nine hundred seventy eight he became its president. Previously, the circuit owners managed the income of the teams and negotiated with each individually, however Ecclestone persuaded the teams to “hunt as a pack” through FOCA. [Nineteen] He suggested Formula One to circuit owners as a package, which they could take or leave. In comeback for the package almost all that was required was to give up trackside advertising. [Legal]

The formation of the Fédération Internationale du Sport Automobile (FISA) during one thousand nine hundred seventy nine set off the FISA–FOCA controversy, during which FISA and its president Jean-Marie Balestre disputed repeatedly with FOCA over television revenues and technical regulations. [20] The Guardian said of FOCA that Ecclestone and Max Mosley “used it to wage a guerrilla war with a very long-term aim in view”. FOCA threatened to establish a rival series, boycotted a Grand Prix and FISA withdrew its sanction from races. [Eighteen] The result was the one thousand nine hundred eighty one Concorde Agreement, which assured technical stability, as teams were to be given reasonable notice of fresh regulations. [21] Albeit FISA asserted its right to the TV revenues, it passed the administration of those rights to FOCA. [22]

FISA imposed a ban on ground-effect aerodynamics during 1983. [23] By then, however, turbocharged engines, which Renault had pioneered in 1977, were producing over seven hundred bhp (520 kW) and were essential to be competitive. By 1986, a BMW turbocharged engine achieved a flash reading of Five.Five bar pressure, estimated to be over 1,300 bhp (970 kW) in qualifying for the Italian Grand Prix. The next year power in race trim reached around 1,100 bhp (820 kW), with boost pressure limited to only Four.0 bar. [24] These cars were the most powerful open-wheel circuit racing cars ever. To reduce engine power output and thus speeds, the FIA limited fuel tank capacity in one thousand nine hundred eighty four and boost pressures in one thousand nine hundred eighty eight before banning turbocharged engines entirely in 1989. [25]

The development of electronic driver aids began during the 1980s. Lotus began to develop a system of active suspension, which very first appeared during one thousand nine hundred eighty two on the 91. By 1987, this system had been perfected and was driven to victory by Ayrton Senna in the Monaco Grand Prix that year. In the early 1990s other teams followed suit and semi-automatic gearboxes and traction control were a natural progression. The FIA, due to complaints that technology was determining the outcome of races more than driver skill, banned many such aids for 1994. This resulted in cars that were previously dependent on electronic aids becoming very “twitchy” and difficult to drive (particularly the Williams FW16). Many observers felt the ban on driver aids was in name only as they “proved difficult to police effectively”. [26]

The teams signed a 2nd Concorde Agreement during one thousand nine hundred ninety two and a third in 1997, which expired on the last day of 2007. [27]

On the track, the McLaren and Williams teams predominated the 1980s and 1990s, with Brabham also being competitive during the early part of the 1980s, winning two Drivers’ Championships with Nelson Piquet. Powered by Porsche, Honda, and Mercedes-Benz, McLaren won sixteen championships (seven constructors’ and nine drivers’) in that period, while Williams used engines from Ford, Honda, and Renault to also win sixteen titles (nine constructors’ and seven drivers’). The rivalry inbetween racers Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost became F1’s central concentrate during 1988, and continued until Prost retired at the end of 1993. Senna died at the one thousand nine hundred ninety four San Marino Grand Prix after crashing into a wall on the exit of the famous curve Tamburello, having taken over Prost’s lead drive at Williams that year. The FIA worked to improve the sport’s safety standards since that weekend, during which Roland Ratzenberger also lost his life in an accident during Saturday qualifying. No driver had died of injuries sustained on the track at the wheel of a Formula One car for twenty years, until the two thousand fourteen Japanese Grand Prix where Jules Bianchi collided with a recovery vehicle after aquaplaning off the circuit. Since 1994, three track marshals have lost their lives, one at the two thousand Italian Grand Prix, [28] the 2nd at the two thousand one Australian Grand Prix [28] and the third at the two thousand thirteen Canadian Grand Prix.

Since the deaths of Senna and Ratzenberger, the FIA has used safety as a reason to impose rule switches that otherwise, under the Concorde Agreement, would have had to be agreed upon by all the teams — most notably the switches introduced for 1998. This so-called ‘narrow track’ era resulted in cars with smaller rear tyres, a narrower track overall, and the introduction of grooved tyres to reduce mechanical grip. There were to be four grooves on the front (three in the very first year) and rear that ran through the entire circumference of the tyre. The objective was to reduce cornering speeds and to produce racing similar to rainy conditions by enforcing a smaller contact patch inbetween tyre and track. This, according to the FIA, was to promote driver skill and provide a better spectacle. [ citation needed ]

Results have been mixed as the lack of mechanical grip has resulted in the more ingenious designers clawing back the deficit with aerodynamic grip — pushing more force onto the tyres through wings and aerodynamic devices, which in turn has resulted in less overtaking as these devices tend to make the wake behind the car ‘dirty’ (turbulent), preventing other cars from following closely due to their dependence on ‘clean’ air to make the car stick to the track. The grooved tyres also had the unfortunate side effect of originally being of a tighter compound to be able to hold the grooved tread blocks, which resulted in spectacular accidents in times of aerodynamic grip failure as the stiffer compound could not grip the track as well.

Drivers from McLaren, Williams, Renault (formerly Benetton), and Ferrari, dubbed the “Big Four”, won every World Championship from one thousand nine hundred eighty four to 2008. The teams won every Constructors’ Championship from one thousand nine hundred seventy nine to two thousand eight as well as placing themselves as the top four teams in the Constructors’ Championship in every season inbetween one thousand nine hundred eighty nine and 1997, and winning every race but one (the one thousand nine hundred ninety six Monaco Grand Prix) inbetween one thousand nine hundred eighty eight and 1997. Due to the technological advances of the 1990s, the cost of rivaling in Formula One enhanced dramatically. This enhanced financial burdens, combined with the dominance of four teams (largely funded by big car manufacturers such as Mercedes-Benz), caused the poorer independent teams to fight not only to remain competitive, but to stay in business, and compelled several teams to withdraw. Since 1990, twenty-eight teams have withdrawn from Formula One. This has prompted former Jordan proprietor Eddie Jordan to say that the days of competitive privateers are over. [29]

Manufacturers’ comeback Edit

Michael Schumacher and Ferrari won five consecutive Drivers’ Championships (2000–2004) and six consecutive Constructors’ Championships (1999–2004). Schumacher set many fresh records, including those for Grand Prix wins (91), wins in a season (thirteen of eighteen), and most Drivers’ Championships (seven). [30] Schumacher’s championship streak ended on twenty five September two thousand five when Renault driver Fernando Alonso became Formula One’s youngest champ at that time, until Lewis Hamilton in 2008. During 2006, Renault and Alonso won both titles again. Schumacher retired at the end of two thousand six after sixteen years in Formula One, but came out of retirement for the two thousand ten season, racing for the freshly formed Mercedes works team, following the rebrand of Brawn GP.

During this period, the championship rules were switched frequently by the FIA with the intention of improving the on-track act and cutting costs. [31] Team orders, legal since the championship embarked during 1950, were banned during two thousand two after several incidents in which teams openly manipulated race results, generating negative publicity, most famously by Ferrari at the two thousand two Austrian Grand Prix. Other switches included the qualifying format, the points scoring system, the technical regulations, and rules specifying how long engines and tyres must last. A “tyre war” inbetween suppliers Michelin and Bridgestone witnessed lap times fall, albeit at the two thousand five United States Grand Prix at Indianapolis, seven out of ten teams did not race when their Michelin tyres were deemed unsafe for use, leading to Bridgestone becoming the foot tyre supplier to Formula One for the two thousand seven season. During 2006, Max Mosley outlined a “green” future for Formula One, in which efficient use of energy would become an significant factor. [32]

Since 1983, Formula One had been predominated by specialist race teams like Williams, McLaren, and Benetton, using engines supplied by large car manufacturers like Mercedes-Benz, Honda, Renault, and Ford. Embarking in 2000, with Ford’s creation of the largely unsuccessful Jaguar team, fresh manufacturer-owned teams entered Formula One for the very first time since the departure of Alfa Romeo and Renault at the end of 1985. By 2006, the manufacturer teams—Renault, BMW, Toyota, Honda, and Ferrari—dominated the championship, taking five of the very first six places in the Constructors’ Championship. The foot exception was McLaren, which at the time was part-owned by Mercedes Benz. Through the Grand Prix Manufacturers Association (GPMA), they negotiated a larger share of Formula One’s commercial profit and a greater say in the running of the sport. [ citation needed ]

Manufacturers’ decline and comeback of the privateers Edit

In two thousand eight and 2009, Honda, BMW, and Toyota all withdrew from Formula One racing within the space of a year, blaming the economic recession. This resulted in the end of manufacturer dominance within the sport. The Honda F1 team went through a management buyout to become Brawn GP with the notable F1 designer Ross Brawn and Nick Fry running and wielding the majority of the organisation. Brawn GP went through a painful size reduction, laying off hundreds of employees, but eventually won the year’s world championships with Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello. BMW F1 was bought out by the original founder of the team, Peter Sauber. The Lotus F1 Team [33] are another, formerly manufacturer-owned team that has reverted to “privateer” ownership, together with the buy-out of the Renault F1 Team by Genii Capital investors in latest years. A link with their previous owners still survived however, with their car continuing to be powered by a Renault Power Unit until 2014.

McLaren also announced that it was to reacquire the shares in its team from Mercedes Benz (McLaren’s partnership with Mercedes was reported to have began to sour with the McLaren Mercedes SLR road car project and raunchy F1 championships which included McLaren being found guilty of spying on Ferrari). Hence, during the two thousand ten season, Mercedes Benz re-entered the sport as a manufacturer after its purchase of Brawn GP, and split with McLaren after fifteen seasons with the team. This left Mercedes, McLaren, and Ferrari as the only car manufacturers in the sport, albeit both McLaren and Ferrari began as racing teams rather than manufacturers.

To compensate for the loss of manufacturer teams, four fresh teams were accepted entry into the two thousand ten season ahead of a much anticipated ‘cost-cap’ (see below). Entrants included a reborn Team Lotus – which was led by a Malaysian consortium including Tony Fernandes, the boss of Air Asia; Hispania Racing – the very first Spanish Formula One team; as well as Cherry Racing – Richard Branson’s entry into the series following a successful partnership with Brawn the year before. They were also joined by the US F1 Team, which planned to run out of the United States as the only non-European based team in the sport. Financial issues befell the squad before they even made the grid. Despite the entry of these fresh teams, the proposed cost-cap was repealed and these teams – who did not have the budgets of the midfield and top-order teams – ran around at the back of the field until they inevitably collapsed; HRT in 2012, Caterham (formerly Lotus) in two thousand fourteen and Manor (formerly Cherry then Marussia), having survived falling into administration in 2014, went under at the end of 2016.

A rule shake-up in two thousand fourteen meant Mercedes emerged as the superior force, with Lewis Hamilton winning the championship closely followed by his main rival and teammate, Nico Rosberg, with the team winning sixteen out of the nineteen races that season (all other victories coming from Daniel Ricciardo of Crimson Bull). Two thousand fourteen also spotted a financial crisis which resulted in the backmarker Marussia and Caterham teams being put into administration, alongside the uncertain futures of Force India and Sauber. Marussia returned under the Manor name in 2015, a season in which Ferrari were the only challengers to Mercedes, with Vettel taking victory in the three Grands Prix Mercedes did not win. [34]

The two thousand sixteen season began in superior style for Nico Rosberg, winning the very first four Grands Prix. His charge was halted by Max Verstappen, who took his maiden win in Spain in his debut race for Crimson Bull. After that, the reigning champ Lewis Hamilton decreased the point gap inbetween him and Rosberg to only one point, before taking the championship lead heading into the summer break. Following the break, the 1–2 positioning remained constant until an engine failure for Hamilton in Malaysia left Rosberg in a commanding lead that he would not relinquish in the five remaining races. Having won the title by a mere five points, Rosberg retired from Formula One at season’s end. The final team remaining from the two thousand ten fresh entries process, Manor Racing, withdrew from the sport following the two thousand sixteen season, having lost 10th in the Constructors’ Championship to Sauber with one race remaining, leaving the grid at twenty cars as Liberty Media took control of the series in the off-season.

Political disputes Edit

FISA–FOCA war Edit

The battle for control of Formula One was contested inbetween the Fédération Internationale du Sport Automobile (FISA), at the time an autonomous subcommittee of the FIA, and FOCA (the Formula One Constructors’ Association).

The beginnings of the dispute are numerous, and many of the underlying reasons may be lost in history. The teams (excepting Ferrari and the other major manufacturers – Renault and Alfa Romeo in particular) were of the opinion that their rights and capability to contest against the larger and better funded teams were being negatively affected by a perceived bias on the part of the controlling organisation (FISA) toward the major manufacturers.

In addition, the battle revolved around the commercial aspects of the sport (the FOCA teams were unhappy with the disbursement of proceeds from the races) and the technical regulations which, in FOCA’s opinion, tended to be malleable according to the nature of the transgressor more than the nature of the transgression.

The war culminated in a FOCA boycott of the one thousand nine hundred eighty two San Marino Grand Prix months later. In theory, all FOCA teams were supposed to boycott the Grand Prix as a sign of solidarity and complaint at the treating of the regulations and financial compensation (and extreme opposition to the accession of Balestre to the position of FISA president: both Colin Chapman of Lotus and Frank Williams of Williams stated clearly that they would not proceed in Formula One with Balestre as its governor). [ original research? ] In practice, several of the FOCA teams backed out of the boycott, citing “sponsor obligations”. Notable among these were the Tyrrell and Toleman teams.

FIA–FOTA dispute Edit

During the two thousand nine season of Formula One, the sport was gripped in a governance crisis. The FIA President Max Mosley proposed numerous cost cutting measures for the following season, including an optional budget cap for the teams; [35] teams electing to take the budget cap would be granted greater technical freedom, adjustable front and rear wings and an engine not subject to a rev limiter. [35] The Formula One Teams Association (FOTA) believed that permitting some teams to have such technical freedom would have created a ‘two-tier’ championship, and thus requested urgent talks with the FIA. However, talks broke down and FOTA teams announced, with the exception of Williams and Force India, [36] [37] that ‘they had no choice’ but to form a breakaway championship series. [37]

On twenty four June, an agreement was reached inbetween Formula One’s governing assets and the teams to prevent a breakaway series. It was agreed teams must cut spending to the level of the early 1990s within two years; exact figures were not specified, [38] and Max Mosley agreed he would not stand for re-election to the FIA presidency in October. [39] Following further disagreements after Max Mosley suggested he would stand for re-election, [40] FOTA made it clear that breakaway plans were still being pursued. On eight July, FOTA issued a press release stating they had been informed they were not entered for the two thousand ten season, [41] and an FIA press release said the FOTA representatives had walked out of the meeting. [42] On one August, it was announced FIA and FOTA had signed a fresh Concorde Agreement, bringing an end to the crisis and securing the sport’s future until 2012. [43]

The terms “Formula One race” and “World Championship race” are effectively synonymous; since 1984, every Formula One race has counted towards an official FIA World Championship, and every World Championship race has been held to Formula One regulations. [44] In the earlier history of Formula One, many races took place outside the world championship, and local championships run to Formula One regulations also occurred. These events often took place on circuits that were not suitable for the World Championship, and featured local cars and drivers as well as those rivaling in the Championship. [9]

European non-championship racing Edit

In the early years of Formula One, before the world championship was established, there were around twenty races held from late Spring to early Autumn in Europe, albeit not all of these were considered significant. Most competitive cars came from Italy, particularly Alfa Romeo. After the commence of the world championship, these non-championship races continued. In the 1950s and 1960s, there were many Formula One races which did not count for the World Championship; in one thousand nine hundred fifty a total of twenty-two Formula One races were held, of which only six counted towards the World Championship. [44] In one thousand nine hundred fifty two and 1953, when the world championship was run for Formula Two cars, non-championship events were the only Formula One races that took place.

Some races, particularly in the UK, including the Race of Champions, Oulton Park International Gold Cup and the International Trophy, were attended by the majority of the world championship contenders. Other smaller events were regularly held in locations not part of the championship, such as the Syracuse and Danish Grands Prix, albeit these only attracted a puny amount of the championship teams and relied on private entries and lower Formula cars to make up the grid. [9] These became less common through the 1970s and one thousand nine hundred eighty three eyed the last non-championship Formula One race; the one thousand nine hundred eighty three Race of Champions at Brands Hatch, won by reigning World Champ Keke Rosberg in a Williams-Cosworth in a close fight with American Danny Sullivan. [9]

South African Formula One championship Edit

South Africa’s flourishing domestic Formula One championship ran from one thousand nine hundred sixty through to 1975. The frontrunning cars in the series were recently retired from the world championship albeit there was also a healthy selection of locally built or modified machines. Frontrunning drivers from the series usually contested their local World Championship Grand Prix, as well as occasional European events, albeit they had little success at that level. [ citation needed ]

British Formula One Series Edit

The DFV helped make the UK domestic Formula One series possible inbetween one thousand nine hundred seventy eight and 1980. As in South Africa a decade before, 2nd arm cars from manufacturers like Lotus and Fittipaldi Automotive were the order of the day, albeit some, such as the March 781, were built specifically for the series. In 1980, the series eyed South African Desiré Wilson become the only woman to win a Formula One race when she triumphed at Brands Hatch in a Wolf WR3. [45]

A Formula One Grand Prix event spans a weekend. It starts with two free practice sessions on Friday (except in Monaco, where Friday practices are moved to Thursday), and one free practice on Saturday. Extra drivers (commonly known as third drivers) are permitted to run on Fridays, but only two cars may be used per team, requiring a race driver to give up his seat. A qualifying session is held after the last free practice session. This session determines the kicking off order for the race on Sunday. [46] [47]

Tyre rules Edit

As of the two thousand sixteen season the tyre rules have switched. This had to do with Pirelli’s introduction of the fresh ultrasoft compound during the two thousand sixteen Monaco Grand Prix. [48] The FIA determines for every race which three of the total of five dry-weather compounds are to be used. In prior seasons only two compounds were available per race, the “prime” and the “option” compound.

Every driver starts the weekend with thirteen sets of tyres, at least fifteen weeks before a non-European race Pirelli will announce which three of the five dry-weather compounds are available during the weekend. For European races this is nine weeks. They also nominate two mandatory sets for the race, one of which has to be used in the race. With one of the thirteen sets being the softest and reserved for the final qualifying session. This leaves ten sets being loosely choosable by each driver. To the thirteen sets of tyres, three sets of wet-weather tyres and four sets of intermediate tyres are added. During a weekend at certain moments drivers have to mitt back sets of tyres. The very first set has to be passed back after forty minutes in the very first practice session and one at the end. For the other two practice sessions two sets have to be transferred in at the end.

Qualifying Edit

For much of the sport’s history, qualifying sessions differed little from practice sessions; drivers would have one or more sessions in which to set their fastest time, with the grid order determined by each driver’s best single lap, with the fastest on pole position. Grids were generally limited to twenty six cars – if the race had more entries, qualification would also determine which drivers would commence the race. During the early 1990s, the number of entries was so high that the worst-performing teams had to come in a pre-qualifying session, with the fastest cars permitted through to the main qualifying session. The qualifying format began to switch in the late 1990s, with the FIA experimenting with limiting the number of laps, determining the aggregate time over two sessions, and permitting each driver only one qualifying lap.

The current qualifying system was adopted in the two thousand six season. Known as “knock-out” qualifying, it is split into three periods, known as Q1, Q2, and Q3. In each period, drivers run qualifying laps to attempt to advance to the next period, with the slowest drivers being “knocked out” at the end of the period and their grid positions set, based on their best lap times. Drivers are permitted as many laps as they wish within each period. After each period, all times are reset, and only a driver’s fastest lap in that period (barring infractions) counts. Any timed lap began before the end of that period may be ended, and will count toward that driver’s placement. The number of cars eliminated in each period is dependent on the total number of cars entered into the championship. [49] Presently, with twenty cars, Q1 runs for eighteen minutes, and eliminates the slowest five drivers. During this period, any driver whose best lap time exceeds 107% of the fastest time in Q1, will not be permitted to embark the race without permission from the stewards. This rule does not affect drivers in Q2 or Q3. In Q2, the fifteen remaining drivers have fifteen minutes to set one of the ten fastest times and proceed to the next period. Eventually, Q3 lasts twelve minutes and sees the remaining ten drivers determine the very first ten grid positions. At the beginning of the two thousand sixteen Formula one season, the FIA introduced a fresh qualifying format, whereby drivers were knocked out every ninety seconds after a certain amount of time had passed in each session. The aim was to mix up grid positions for the race, but due to unpopularity the FIA reverted to the above qualifying format for the Chinese GP, after running the format for only two races. [49]

Each car taking part in Q3 receives an ‘extra’ set of the softest available tyre. This set has to be transferred in after qualifying, drivers knocked out in Q1 or Q2 can use this set for the race. The very first ten drivers, i.e. the drivers through to Q3 must embark the race on the tyre which set the fastest time in Q2, unless the weather requires the use of wet-weather tyres. In which case all of the rules about the tyres won’t be followed. [50] [51] All of the drivers that did not participate in Q3 have free tyre choice for the begin of the race. Any penalties that affect grid position are applied at the end of qualifying. Grid penalties can be applied for driving infractions in the previous or current Grand Prix, or for switching a gearbox or engine component. If a car fails scrutineering, the driver will be excluded from qualifying, but will be permitted to begin the race from the back of the grid at the race steward’s discretion.

Race Edit

The race embarks with a warm-up lap, after which the cars assemble on the beginning grid in the order they qualified. This lap is often referred to as the formation lap, as the cars lap in formation with no overtaking (albeit a driver who makes a mistake may regain lost ground provided he has not fallen to the back of the field). The warm-up lap permits drivers to check the condition of the track and their car, gives the tyres a chance to warm up to increase traction, and also gives the pit crews time to clear themselves and their equipment from the grid.

Once all the cars have formed on the grid, a light system above the track indicates the commence of the race: five crimson lights are illuminated at intervals of one 2nd; they are all then extinguished at the same time after an unspecified time (typically less than three seconds) to signal the commence of the race. The commence procedure may be abandoned if a driver stalls on the grid, signalled by raising his arm. If this happens, the procedure restarts: a fresh formation lap commences with the offending car liquidated from the grid. The race may also be restarted in the event of a serious accident or dangerous conditions, with the original embark voided. The race may be began from behind the Safety Car if officials feel a racing commence would be excessively dangerous, such as utterly powerful rainfall. As of the two thousand seventeen season there will always be a standing restart. If due to powerful rainfall a commence behind the safety car is necessary, then after the track has dried adequately, drivers will form up for a standing begin. There is no formation lap when races commence behind the Safety Car. [52]

Under normal circumstances, the winner of the race is the very first driver to cross the finish line having ended a set number of laps. Race officials may end the race early (putting out a crimson flag) due to unsafe conditions such as extreme rainfall, and it must finish within two hours, albeit races are only likely to last this long in the case of extreme weather or if the safety car is deployed during the race.

In the 1950s, race distances varied from three hundred km (190 mi) to six hundred km (370 mi). The maximum race length was diminished to four hundred km (250 mi) in one thousand nine hundred sixty six and three hundred twenty five km (202 mi) in 1971. The race length was standardised to the current three hundred five km (190 mi) in 1989. However, street races like Monaco have shorter distances, to keep under the two hour limit.

Drivers may overtake one another for position over the course of the race and are “Classified” in the order they finished 90% of the race distance. If a leader comes across a back marker (slower car) who has finished fewer laps, the back marker is shown a blue flag [53] telling him he is obliged to permit the leader to overtake him. The slower car is said to be “lapped” and, once the leader finishes the race, is classified as ending the race “one lap down”. A driver can be lapped numerous times, by any car in front of him. A driver who fails to finish a race, through mechanical problems, accident, or any other reason is said to have retired from the race and is “Not Classified” in the results. However, if the driver has ended more than 90% of the race distance, he will be classified.

Via the race, drivers may make pit stops to switch tyres and repair harm (from one thousand nine hundred ninety four to two thousand nine inclusive, they could also refuel). Different teams and drivers employ different pit stop strategies in order to maximise their car’s potential. Three dry tyre compounds, with different durability and adhesion characteristics, are available to drivers. Over the course of a race, drivers must use two of the three available compounds. The different compounds have different levels of spectacle, and choosing when to use which compound is a key tactical decision to make. Different tyres have different colours on their sidewalls; this permits spectators to understand the strategies. Under moist conditions, drivers may switch to one of two specialised raw weather tyres with extra grooves (one “intermediate”, for mild moist conditions, such as after latest rain, one “utter moist”, for racing in or instantly after rain). A driver must make at least one stop to use two tyre compounds; up to three stops are typically made, albeit further stops may be necessary to fix harm or if weather conditions switch. If rain tyres are used, drivers are no longer obliged to use both types of dry tyres.

Race director As of 2017, the race director in Formula One is Charlie Whiting. This role involves him generally managing the logistics of each F1 Grand Prix, probing cars in parc fermé before a race, enforcing FIA rules and controlling the lights which begin each race. As the head of the race officials, he also plays a large role in sorting disputes amongst teams and drivers. Penalties, such as drive-through penalties (and stop-and-go penalties), demotions on a pre-race begin grid, race disqualifications, and fines can all be transferred out should parties break regulations. Safety car In the event of an incident that risks the safety of competitors or trackside race marshals, race officials may choose to deploy the safety car. This in effect suspends the race, with drivers following the safety car around the track at its speed in race order, with overtaking not permitted. The safety car circulates until the danger is cleared; after it comes in, the race restarts with a “rolling embark”. Pit stops are permitted under the safety car. Mercedes-Benz supplies Mercedes-AMG models to Formula One to use as the safety cars. Since 2000, [54] the main safety car driver has been German ex-racing driver Bernd Mayländer. On the lap in which the safety car comes back to the pits, the leading car takes over the role of the safety car until the very first safety car line, which is usually a white line after the pit lane entrance. After crossing this line, drivers are permitted to commence racing for track position once more.

Flags Edit

The format of the race has switched little through Formula One’s history. The main switches have revolved around what is permitted at pit stops. In the early days of Grand Prix racing, a driver would be permitted to proceed a race in his teammate’s car should his develop a problem—in the modern era, cars are so cautiously fitted to drivers that this has become unlikely. In latest years, the emphasis has been on switching refuelling and tyre switch regulations. From the two thousand ten season, refuelling—which was reintroduced in 1994—has not been permitted, to encourage less tactical racing following safety concerns. The rule requiring both compounds of tyre to be used during the race was introduced in 2007, again to encourage racing on the track. The safety car is another relatively latest innovation that diminished the need to deploy the crimson flag, permitting races to be ended on time for a growing international live television audience.

Points system Edit

Various systems for awarding championship points have been used since 1950. The current system, in place since 2010, awards the top ten cars points in the Drivers’ and Constructors’ championships, with the winner receiving twenty five points. If both cars of a team finish in the points, they both receive Constructors’ Championship points. All points won at each race are added up, and the driver and constructor with the most points at the end of the season are crowned World Champions. Regardless of whether a driver stays with the same team across the season, or switches teams, all points earned by him count for the Drivers’ Championship. [55]

A driver must be classified to receive points. In order to be classified, a driver need not finish the race, but finish at least 90% of the winner’s race distance. Therefore, it is possible for a driver to receive points even if they retired before the end of the race. [56]

In the event that less than 75% of the race laps are finished by the winner, only half of the points listed in the table are awarded to the drivers and constructors. This has happened on only five occasions in the history of the championship, and it had a notable influence on the final standing of the one thousand nine hundred eighty four season. The last occurrence was at the two thousand nine Malaysian Grand Prix when the race was called off after thirty one laps due to torrential rain. [57]

Since 1981, [58] Formula One teams have been required to build the chassis in which they challenge, and consequently the terms “team” and “constructor” became more or less interchangeable. This requirement distinguishes the sport from series such as the IndyCar Series which permits teams to purchase chassis, and “spec series” such as GP2, which require all cars be kept to an identical specification. It also effectively prohibits privateers, which were common even in Formula One well into the 1970s.

The sport’s debut season, 1950, witnessed eighteen teams challenge, but due to high costs many dropped out quickly. In fact, such was the scarcity of competitive cars for much of the very first decade of Formula One that Formula Two cars were admitted to pack the grids. Ferrari is the oldest Formula One team, the only still-active team which competed in 1950.

Early manufacturer involvement came in the form of a “factory team” or “works team” (that is, one possessed and staffed by a major car company), such as those of Alfa Romeo, Ferrari, or Renault. After having virtually disappeared by the early 1980s, factory teams made a comeback in the 1990s and 2000s and formed up to half the grid with Ferrari, Jaguar, BMW, Renault, Toyota, and Honda either setting up their own teams or buying out existing ones. Mercedes-Benz possessed 40% of the McLaren team and manufactured the team’s engines. Factory teams make up the top competitive teams; in two thousand eight wholly wielded factory teams took four of the top five positions in the Constructors’ Championship, and McLaren the other. Ferrari holds the record for having won the most Constructors’ Championships (sixteen). However, by the end of the 2000s factory teams were once again on the decline with only Ferrari, Mercedes-Benz and Renault lodging entries to the two thousand ten championship.

Companies such as Orgasm, Repco, Cosworth, Hart, Judd and Supertec, which had no direct team affiliation, often sold engines to teams that could not afford to manufacture them. In the early years, independently possessed Formula One teams sometimes also built their engines, however this became less common with the enlargened involvement of major car manufacturers such as BMW, Ferrari, Honda, Mercedes-Benz, Renault, and Toyota, whose large budgets rendered privately built engines less competitive. Cosworth was the last independent engine supplier. Beginning in 2007, the manufacturers’ deep pockets and engineering capability took over, eliminating the last of the independent engine manufacturers. [59] It is estimated the major teams spend inbetween €100 and €200 million ($125–$225 million) per year per manufacturer on engines alone. [60]

In the two thousand seven season, for the very first time since the one thousand nine hundred eighty one rule, two teams used chassis built by other teams. Super Aguri commenced the season using a modified Honda Racing RA106 chassis (used by Honda the previous year), while Scuderia Toro Rosso used the same chassis used by the parent Crimson Bull Racing team, which was formally designed by a separate subsidiary. The usage of these loopholes was ended for two thousand ten with the publication of fresh technical regulations, which require each constructor to own the intellectual property rights to their chassis, [61] which prevents a team using a chassis possessed by another Formula One constructor. [62] The regulations proceed to permit a team to subcontract the design and construction of the chassis to a third-party, an option used by the HRT team in 2010.

Albeit teams infrequently disclose information about their budgets, it is estimated they range from US$66 million to US$400 million each. [63]

Coming in a fresh team in the Formula One World Championship requires a £25 million (about US$47 million) up-front payment to the FIA, which is then repaid to the team over the course of the season. As a consequence, constructors desiring to inject Formula One often choose to buy an existing team: B.A.R.’s purchase of Tyrrell and Midland’s purchase of Jordan permitted both of these teams to sidestep the large deposit and secure the benefits the team already had, such as TV revenue.

Every team in Formula One must run two cars in every session in a Grand Prix weekend, and every team may use up to four drivers in a season. [47] A team may also run two extra drivers in Free Practice sessions, [47] which are often used to test potential fresh drivers for a career as a Formula One driver or build up experienced drivers to evaluate the car. [64] [65] Most modern drivers are contracted for at least the duration of a season, with driver switches taking place in inbetween seasons, in comparison to early years where drivers often competed at an ad hoc basis from race to race. Each competitor must be in the possession of a FIA Super Licence to contest in a Grand Prix, [66] which is issued to drivers who have met the criteria of success in junior motorsport categories and having achieved three hundred kilometres (190 mi) of running in a Formula One car. Drivers may also be issued a Super Licence by the World Motor Sport Council if they fail to meet the criteria. [66] Teams also contract test and reserve drivers, to stand in for regular drivers when necessary and develop the team’s car; albeit with the reduction on testing the reserve drivers’ role mainly takes places on a simulator, [67] such as rFactor Pro, [68] [Sixty nine] which is used by most of the F1 teams. [70] [71] Albeit most drivers earn their seat on capability, commercial considerations also come into play with teams having to sate sponsors and financial requests.

Each driver chooses an unassigned number from two to ninety nine (excluding 17) [72] upon coming in Formula One, and keeps that number during his time in the series. The number one is reserved for the reigning Drivers’ Champ, who retains his previous number and may choose to (but doesn’t have to) use it instead of the number one. [73] At the onset of the championship, numbers were allocated by race organisers on an ad-hoc basis from race to race, and competitors did not have a permanent number via the season. [74] Permanent numbers were introduced in one thousand nine hundred seventy three to take effect in 1974, when teams were allocated numbers in ascending order based on the Constructors’ Championship standings at the end of the one thousand nine hundred seventy three season. The teams would hold those numbers from season to season with the exception of the team with the world Drivers’ Champ, which would interchange its numbers with the one and two of the previous champ’s team. Fresh entrants were allocated spare numbers, with the exception of the number thirteen which had been unused since 1976. [75] As teams kept their numbers for long periods of time, car numbers became associated with a team, such as Ferrari’s twenty seven and 28. [74] A different system was used from one thousand nine hundred ninety six to 2013: at the embark of each season, the current Drivers’ Champ was designated number one, his teammate number two, and the rest of the teams assigned ascending numbers according to previous season’s Constructors’ Championship order. [76]

A total of thirty three separate drivers have won the world championship, with Michael Schumacher holding the record for most championships with seven, as well as holding the race wins and pole position records. Juan Manuel Fangio has won the next most, with five championships won during the 1950s, as well as having won the greatest percentage of wins, with twenty four out of fifty two entries. Jochen Rindt is the only posthumous World Champ, after his points total was not overhauled despite his fatal accident at the one thousand nine hundred seventy Italian Grand Prix. Drivers from the United Kingdom have been the most successful in the sport, with fourteen championships from ten drivers, and two hundred fourteen wins from Nineteen.

Feeder series Edit

Most F1 drivers commence in kart racing competitions, and then come up through traditional European single seater series like Formula Ford and Formula Renault to Formula Three, and ultimately the GP2 Series. GP2 embarked in 2005, substituting Formula 3000, which itself had substituted Formula Two as the last major stepping-stone into F1. Most champions from this level graduate into F1, but two thousand six GP2 champ Lewis Hamilton became the very first F2, F3000 or GP2 champ to win the Formula One driver’s title in 2008. [77] Drivers are not required to have competed at this level before coming in Formula One. British F3 has supplied many F1 drivers, with champions including Nigel Mansell, Ayrton Senna and Mika Häkkinen having moved straight from that series to Formula One. More uncommonly a driver may be picked from an even lower level, as was the case with two thousand seven World Champ Kimi Räikkönen, who went straight from Formula Renault to F1, as well as Max Verstappen, who made his debut following a single season in European F3. [78]

American Championship Car Racing has also contributed to the Formula One grid with mixed results. CART Champions Mario Andretti and Jacques Villeneuve became F1 World Champions, while Juan Pablo Montoya won seven races in F1. Other CART (also known as ChampCar) Champions, like Michael Andretti and Alessandro Zanardi won no races in F1. Other drivers have taken different paths to F1; Damon Hill raced motorbikes, and Michael Schumacher raced in sports cars, albeit after climbing through the junior single seater ranks. Former F1 driver Paul di Resta raced in DTM until he was signed with Force India in 2011. To race, however, the driver must hold an FIA Super Licence–ensuring that the driver has the requisite abilities, and will not therefore be a danger to others. Some drivers have not had the licence when very first signed to a F1 team; Räikkönen received the licence despite having only twenty three car races to his credit.

Formula One

Formula One

Formula One (also Formula 1 or F1 and officially the FIA Formula One World Championship) is the highest class of single-seat auto racing that is sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been the premier form of racing since the inaugural season in 1950, albeit other Formula One races were regularly held until 1983. The “formula”, designated in the name, refers to a set of rules, to which all participants’ cars must conform. [Two] The F1 season consists of a series of races, known as Grands Prix (from French, meaning grand prizes), held worldwide on purpose-built F1 circuits and public roads.

The results of each race are evaluated using a points system to determine two annual World Championships, one for drivers, one for constructors. The racing drivers are required to be holders of valid Super Licences, the highest class of racing licence issued by the FIA. [Three] The races are required to be held on tracks graded one (formerly A), the highest grade a track can receive by the FIA. [Trio] Most events are held in rural locations on purpose-built tracks, but there are several events in city centres across the world, with the Monaco Grand Prix being the most well-known.

Formula One cars are the fastest road course racing cars in the world, owing to very high cornering speeds achieved through the generation of large amounts of aerodynamic downforce. Formula One cars race at speeds of up to approximately three hundred seventy five km/h (233 mph) with engines presently limited in spectacle to a maximum of 15,000 rpm. The cars are capable of lateral acceleration in excess of six g in corners. The cars are very dependent on electronics, albeit traction control and other driving aids have been banned since 2008, and also on aerodynamics, suspension, and tyres. The formula has radically evolved and switched through the history of the sport.

While Europe is the sport’s traditional base, and hosts about half of each year’s races, the sport’s scope has expanded significantly and an enlargening number of Grands Prix are held on other continents. F1 had a total global television audience of four hundred twenty five million people during the course of the two thousand fourteen season. [Four] Grand Prix racing began in one thousand nine hundred six and became the most popular type internationally in the 2nd half of the twentieth century. The Formula One Group is the legal holder of the commercial rights. [Five]

With the cost of designing and building mid-tier cars being of the order of $120 million, [6] Formula One’s economic effect and creation of jobs are significant, and its financial and political battles are widely reported. Its high profile and popularity have created a major merchandising environment, which has resulted in large investments from sponsors and budgets in the hundreds of millions for the constructors. Since two thousand the sport’s spiralling expenditures and the distribution of prize money favouring established top teams have compelled complaints from smaller teams and led several teams to bankruptcy.

On eight September two thousand sixteen it was announced that Liberty Media had agreed to buy Delta Topco, the company that controls Formula One, from private equity hard CVC Capital Playmates for $Four.Four billion in cash, stock and convertible debt. [7] On twenty three January two thousand seventeen it was confirmed that Liberty Media had finished its $8 billion acquisition of Delta Topco. [8]

Contents

The Formula One series originated with the European Grand Prix Motor Racing (q.v. for pre-1947 history) of the 1920s and 1930s. The formula is a set of rules that all participants’ cars must meet. Formula One was a fresh formula agreed upon after World War II during 1946, with the very first non-championship races being held that year. A number of Grand Prix racing organisations had laid out rules for a world championship before the war, but due to the suspension of racing during the conflict, the World Drivers’ Championship was not formalised until 1947. The very first world championship race was held at Silverstone, United Kingdom in 1950. A championship for constructors followed in 1958. National championships existed in South Africa and the UK in the 1960s and 1970s. Non-championship Formula One events were held for many years, but due to the enhancing cost of competition, the last of these occurred in 1983. [9]

Comeback of racing Edit

The very first World Championship for Drivers was won by Italian Giuseppe Farina in his Alfa Romeo in 1950, narrowly defeating his Argentine teammate Juan Manuel Fangio. However, Fangio won the title in 1951, 1954, 1955, 1956, and one thousand nine hundred fifty seven (His record of five World Championship titles stood for forty five years until German driver Michael Schumacher took his sixth title in 2003), his streak interrupted (after an injury) by two-time champ Alberto Ascari of Ferrari. Albeit the UK’s Stirling Moss was able to rival regularly, he was never able to win the world championship, and is now widely considered to be the greatest driver never to have won the title. [Ten] [11] Fangio, however, is remembered for predominant Formula One’s very first decade and has long been considered the “Grand Master” of Formula One.

This period featured teams managed by road car manufacturers Alfa Romeo, Ferrari, Mercedes-Benz, and Maserati; all of whom had competed before the war. The very first seasons were run using pre-war cars like Alfa’s 158. They were front-engined, with narrow tyres and 1.5-litre supercharged or Four.5-litre normally aspirated engines. The one thousand nine hundred fifty two and one thousand nine hundred fifty three world championships were run to Formula Two regulations, for smaller, less powerful cars, due to concerns over the paucity of Formula One cars available. [12] When a fresh Formula One, for engines limited to Two.Five litres, was reinstated to the world championship for 1954, Mercedes-Benz introduced the advanced W196, which featured innovations such as desmodromic valves and fuel injection as well as enclosed streamlined bodywork. Mercedes drivers won the championship for two years, before the team withdrew from all motorsport in the wake of the one thousand nine hundred fifty five Le Guy’s disaster. [13]

The Garagistas Edit

The very first major technological development, Bugatti’s re-introduction of mid-engined cars (following Ferdinand Porsche’s pioneering Auto Unions of the 1930s), occurred with the Type 251, which was unsuccessful. Australian Jack Brabham, world champ during 1959, 1960, and 1966, soon proved the mid-engined design’s superiority. By 1961, all regular competitors had switched to mid-engined cars. The Ferguson P99, a four-wheel drive design, was the last front-engined F1 car to inject a world championship race. It was entered in the one thousand nine hundred sixty one British Grand Prix, the only front-engined car to challenge that year. [14]

The very first British World Champ was Mike Hawthorn, who drove a Ferrari to the title during the one thousand nine hundred fifty eight season. However, when Colin Chapman entered F1 as a chassis designer and later founder of Team Lotus, British racing green came to predominate the field for the next decade. Including Brabham, Jim Clark, Jackie Stewart, John Surtees, Graham Hill, and Denny Hulme, British teams and Commonwealth drivers won twelve world championships inbetween one thousand nine hundred sixty two and 1973.

During 1962, Lotus introduced a car with an aluminium-sheet monocoque chassis instead of the traditional space-frame design. This proved to be the greatest technological breakthrough since the introduction of mid-engined cars. During 1968, Lotus painted Imperial Tobacco livery on their cars, thus introducing sponsorship to the sport. [15] [16]

Aerodynamic downforce leisurely gained importance in car design from the appearance of aerofoils during the late 1960s. During the late 1970s, Lotus introduced ground-effect aerodynamics (previously used on Jim Hall’s Chaparral 2J during 1970) that provided enormous downforce and greatly enhanced cornering speeds. So superb were the aerodynamic compels pressing the cars to the track (up to five times the car’s weight), utterly stiff springs were needed to maintain a constant rail height, leaving the suspension virtually solid, depending entirely on the tyres for any puny amount of cushioning of the car and driver from irregularities of the road surface. [17]

Big business Edit

Beginning in the 1970s, Bernie Ecclestone rearranged the management of Formula One’s commercial rights; he is widely credited with converting the sport into the multibillion-dollar business it now is. [Legal] [Nineteen] When Ecclestone bought the Brabham team during one thousand nine hundred seventy one he gained a seat on the Formula One Constructors’ Association and during one thousand nine hundred seventy eight he became its president. Previously, the circuit owners managed the income of the teams and negotiated with each individually, however Ecclestone persuaded the teams to “hunt as a pack” through FOCA. [Nineteen] He suggested Formula One to circuit owners as a package, which they could take or leave. In come back for the package almost all that was required was to capitulate trackside advertising. [Eighteen]

The formation of the Fédération Internationale du Sport Automobile (FISA) during one thousand nine hundred seventy nine set off the FISA–FOCA controversy, during which FISA and its president Jean-Marie Balestre disputed repeatedly with FOCA over television revenues and technical regulations. [20] The Guardian said of FOCA that Ecclestone and Max Mosley “used it to wage a guerrilla war with a very long-term aim in view”. FOCA threatened to establish a rival series, boycotted a Grand Prix and FISA withdrew its sanction from races. [Legal] The result was the one thousand nine hundred eighty one Concorde Agreement, which assured technical stability, as teams were to be given reasonable notice of fresh regulations. [21] Albeit FISA asserted its right to the TV revenues, it transferred the administration of those rights to FOCA. [22]

FISA imposed a ban on ground-effect aerodynamics during 1983. [23] By then, however, turbocharged engines, which Renault had pioneered in 1977, were producing over seven hundred bhp (520 kW) and were essential to be competitive. By 1986, a BMW turbocharged engine achieved a flash reading of Five.Five bar pressure, estimated to be over 1,300 bhp (970 kW) in qualifying for the Italian Grand Prix. The next year power in race trim reached around 1,100 bhp (820 kW), with boost pressure limited to only Four.0 bar. [24] These cars were the most powerful open-wheel circuit racing cars ever. To reduce engine power output and thus speeds, the FIA limited fuel tank capacity in one thousand nine hundred eighty four and boost pressures in one thousand nine hundred eighty eight before banning turbocharged engines fully in 1989. [25]

The development of electronic driver aids began during the 1980s. Lotus began to develop a system of active suspension, which very first appeared during one thousand nine hundred eighty two on the 91. By 1987, this system had been perfected and was driven to victory by Ayrton Senna in the Monaco Grand Prix that year. In the early 1990s other teams followed suit and semi-automatic gearboxes and traction control were a natural progression. The FIA, due to complaints that technology was determining the outcome of races more than driver skill, banned many such aids for 1994. This resulted in cars that were previously dependent on electronic aids becoming very “twitchy” and difficult to drive (particularly the Williams FW16). Many observers felt the ban on driver aids was in name only as they “proved difficult to police effectively”. [26]

The teams signed a 2nd Concorde Agreement during one thousand nine hundred ninety two and a third in 1997, which expired on the last day of 2007. [27]

On the track, the McLaren and Williams teams predominated the 1980s and 1990s, with Brabham also being competitive during the early part of the 1980s, winning two Drivers’ Championships with Nelson Piquet. Powered by Porsche, Honda, and Mercedes-Benz, McLaren won sixteen championships (seven constructors’ and nine drivers’) in that period, while Williams used engines from Ford, Honda, and Renault to also win sixteen titles (nine constructors’ and seven drivers’). The rivalry inbetween racers Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost became F1’s central concentrate during 1988, and continued until Prost retired at the end of 1993. Senna died at the one thousand nine hundred ninety four San Marino Grand Prix after crashing into a wall on the exit of the legendary curve Tamburello, having taken over Prost’s lead drive at Williams that year. The FIA worked to improve the sport’s safety standards since that weekend, during which Roland Ratzenberger also lost his life in an accident during Saturday qualifying. No driver had died of injuries sustained on the track at the wheel of a Formula One car for twenty years, until the two thousand fourteen Japanese Grand Prix where Jules Bianchi collided with a recovery vehicle after aquaplaning off the circuit. Since 1994, three track marshals have lost their lives, one at the two thousand Italian Grand Prix, [28] the 2nd at the two thousand one Australian Grand Prix [28] and the third at the two thousand thirteen Canadian Grand Prix.

Since the deaths of Senna and Ratzenberger, the FIA has used safety as a reason to impose rule switches that otherwise, under the Concorde Agreement, would have had to be agreed upon by all the teams — most notably the switches introduced for 1998. This so-called ‘narrow track’ era resulted in cars with smaller rear tyres, a narrower track overall, and the introduction of grooved tyres to reduce mechanical grip. There were to be four grooves on the front (three in the very first year) and rear that ran through the entire circumference of the tyre. The objective was to reduce cornering speeds and to produce racing similar to rainy conditions by enforcing a smaller contact patch inbetween tyre and track. This, according to the FIA, was to promote driver skill and provide a better spectacle. [ citation needed ]

Results have been mixed as the lack of mechanical grip has resulted in the more ingenious designers clawing back the deficit with aerodynamic grip — pushing more force onto the tyres through wings and aerodynamic devices, which in turn has resulted in less overtaking as these devices tend to make the wake behind the car ‘dirty’ (turbulent), preventing other cars from following closely due to their dependence on ‘clean’ air to make the car stick to the track. The grooved tyres also had the unfortunate side effect of primarily being of a firmer compound to be able to hold the grooved tread blocks, which resulted in spectacular accidents in times of aerodynamic grip failure as the firmer compound could not grip the track as well.

Drivers from McLaren, Williams, Renault (formerly Benetton), and Ferrari, dubbed the “Big Four”, won every World Championship from one thousand nine hundred eighty four to 2008. The teams won every Constructors’ Championship from one thousand nine hundred seventy nine to two thousand eight as well as placing themselves as the top four teams in the Constructors’ Championship in every season inbetween one thousand nine hundred eighty nine and 1997, and winning every race but one (the one thousand nine hundred ninety six Monaco Grand Prix) inbetween one thousand nine hundred eighty eight and 1997. Due to the technological advances of the 1990s, the cost of challenging in Formula One enhanced dramatically. This enlargened financial burdens, combined with the dominance of four teams (largely funded by big car manufacturers such as Mercedes-Benz), caused the poorer independent teams to fight not only to remain competitive, but to stay in business, and coerced several teams to withdraw. Since 1990, twenty-eight teams have withdrawn from Formula One. This has prompted former Jordan holder Eddie Jordan to say that the days of competitive privateers are over. [29]

Manufacturers’ come back Edit

Michael Schumacher and Ferrari won five consecutive Drivers’ Championships (2000–2004) and six consecutive Constructors’ Championships (1999–2004). Schumacher set many fresh records, including those for Grand Prix wins (91), wins in a season (thirteen of eighteen), and most Drivers’ Championships (seven). [30] Schumacher’s championship streak ended on twenty five September two thousand five when Renault driver Fernando Alonso became Formula One’s youngest champ at that time, until Lewis Hamilton in 2008. During 2006, Renault and Alonso won both titles again. Schumacher retired at the end of two thousand six after sixteen years in Formula One, but came out of retirement for the two thousand ten season, racing for the freshly formed Mercedes works team, following the rebrand of Brawn GP.

During this period, the championship rules were switched frequently by the FIA with the intention of improving the on-track activity and cutting costs. [31] Team orders, legal since the championship embarked during 1950, were banned during two thousand two after several incidents in which teams openly manipulated race results, generating negative publicity, most famously by Ferrari at the two thousand two Austrian Grand Prix. Other switches included the qualifying format, the points scoring system, the technical regulations, and rules specifying how long engines and tyres must last. A “tyre war” inbetween suppliers Michelin and Bridgestone witnessed lap times fall, albeit at the two thousand five United States Grand Prix at Indianapolis, seven out of ten teams did not race when their Michelin tyres were deemed unsafe for use, leading to Bridgestone becoming the foot tyre supplier to Formula One for the two thousand seven season. During 2006, Max Mosley outlined a “green” future for Formula One, in which efficient use of energy would become an significant factor. [32]

Since 1983, Formula One had been predominated by specialist race teams like Williams, McLaren, and Benetton, using engines supplied by large car manufacturers like Mercedes-Benz, Honda, Renault, and Ford. Embarking in 2000, with Ford’s creation of the largely unsuccessful Jaguar team, fresh manufacturer-owned teams entered Formula One for the very first time since the departure of Alfa Romeo and Renault at the end of 1985. By 2006, the manufacturer teams—Renault, BMW, Toyota, Honda, and Ferrari—dominated the championship, taking five of the very first six places in the Constructors’ Championship. The foot exception was McLaren, which at the time was part-owned by Mercedes Benz. Through the Grand Prix Manufacturers Association (GPMA), they negotiated a larger share of Formula One’s commercial profit and a greater say in the running of the sport. [ citation needed ]

Manufacturers’ decline and come back of the privateers Edit

In two thousand eight and 2009, Honda, BMW, and Toyota all withdrew from Formula One racing within the space of a year, blaming the economic recession. This resulted in the end of manufacturer dominance within the sport. The Honda F1 team went through a management buyout to become Brawn GP with the notable F1 designer Ross Brawn and Nick Fry running and possessing the majority of the organisation. Brawn GP went through a painful size reduction, laying off hundreds of employees, but eventually won the year’s world championships with Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello. BMW F1 was bought out by the original founder of the team, Peter Sauber. The Lotus F1 Team [33] are another, formerly manufacturer-owned team that has reverted to “privateer” ownership, together with the buy-out of the Renault F1 Team by Genii Capital investors in latest years. A link with their previous owners still survived however, with their car continuing to be powered by a Renault Power Unit until 2014.

McLaren also announced that it was to reacquire the shares in its team from Mercedes Benz (McLaren’s partnership with Mercedes was reported to have commenced to sour with the McLaren Mercedes SLR road car project and raunchy F1 championships which included McLaren being found guilty of spying on Ferrari). Hence, during the two thousand ten season, Mercedes Benz re-entered the sport as a manufacturer after its purchase of Brawn GP, and split with McLaren after fifteen seasons with the team. This left Mercedes, McLaren, and Ferrari as the only car manufacturers in the sport, albeit both McLaren and Ferrari began as racing teams rather than manufacturers.

To compensate for the loss of manufacturer teams, four fresh teams were accepted entry into the two thousand ten season ahead of a much anticipated ‘cost-cap’ (see below). Entrants included a reborn Team Lotus – which was led by a Malaysian consortium including Tony Fernandes, the boss of Air Asia; Hispania Racing – the very first Spanish Formula One team; as well as Cherry Racing – Richard Branson’s entry into the series following a successful partnership with Brawn the year before. They were also joined by the US F1 Team, which planned to run out of the United States as the only non-European based team in the sport. Financial issues befell the squad before they even made the grid. Despite the entry of these fresh teams, the proposed cost-cap was repealed and these teams – who did not have the budgets of the midfield and top-order teams – ran around at the back of the field until they inevitably collapsed; HRT in 2012, Caterham (formerly Lotus) in two thousand fourteen and Manor (formerly Cherry then Marussia), having survived falling into administration in 2014, went under at the end of 2016.

A rule shake-up in two thousand fourteen meant Mercedes emerged as the superior force, with Lewis Hamilton winning the championship closely followed by his main rival and teammate, Nico Rosberg, with the team winning sixteen out of the nineteen races that season (all other victories coming from Daniel Ricciardo of Crimson Bull). Two thousand fourteen also witnessed a financial crisis which resulted in the backmarker Marussia and Caterham teams being put into administration, alongside the uncertain futures of Force India and Sauber. Marussia returned under the Manor name in 2015, a season in which Ferrari were the only challengers to Mercedes, with Vettel taking victory in the three Grands Prix Mercedes did not win. [34]

The two thousand sixteen season began in superior style for Nico Rosberg, winning the very first four Grands Prix. His charge was halted by Max Verstappen, who took his maiden win in Spain in his debut race for Crimson Bull. After that, the reigning champ Lewis Hamilton decreased the point gap inbetween him and Rosberg to only one point, before taking the championship lead heading into the summer break. Following the break, the 1–2 positioning remained constant until an engine failure for Hamilton in Malaysia left Rosberg in a commanding lead that he would not relinquish in the five remaining races. Having won the title by a mere five points, Rosberg retired from Formula One at season’s end. The final team remaining from the two thousand ten fresh entries process, Manor Racing, withdrew from the sport following the two thousand sixteen season, having lost 10th in the Constructors’ Championship to Sauber with one race remaining, leaving the grid at twenty cars as Liberty Media took control of the series in the off-season.

Political disputes Edit

FISA–FOCA war Edit

The battle for control of Formula One was contested inbetween the Fédération Internationale du Sport Automobile (FISA), at the time an autonomous subcommittee of the FIA, and FOCA (the Formula One Constructors’ Association).

The beginnings of the dispute are numerous, and many of the underlying reasons may be lost in history. The teams (excepting Ferrari and the other major manufacturers – Renault and Alfa Romeo in particular) were of the opinion that their rights and capability to contest against the larger and better funded teams were being negatively affected by a perceived bias on the part of the controlling organisation (FISA) toward the major manufacturers.

In addition, the battle revolved around the commercial aspects of the sport (the FOCA teams were unhappy with the disbursement of proceeds from the races) and the technical regulations which, in FOCA’s opinion, tended to be malleable according to the nature of the transgressor more than the nature of the transgression.

The war culminated in a FOCA boycott of the one thousand nine hundred eighty two San Marino Grand Prix months later. In theory, all FOCA teams were supposed to boycott the Grand Prix as a sign of solidarity and complaint at the treating of the regulations and financial compensation (and extreme opposition to the accession of Balestre to the position of FISA president: both Colin Chapman of Lotus and Frank Williams of Williams stated clearly that they would not proceed in Formula One with Balestre as its governor). [ original research? ] In practice, several of the FOCA teams backed out of the boycott, citing “sponsor obligations”. Notable among these were the Tyrrell and Toleman teams.

FIA–FOTA dispute Edit

During the two thousand nine season of Formula One, the sport was gripped in a governance crisis. The FIA President Max Mosley proposed numerous cost cutting measures for the following season, including an optional budget cap for the teams; [35] teams electing to take the budget cap would be granted greater technical freedom, adjustable front and rear wings and an engine not subject to a rev limiter. [35] The Formula One Teams Association (FOTA) believed that permitting some teams to have such technical freedom would have created a ‘two-tier’ championship, and thus requested urgent talks with the FIA. However, talks broke down and FOTA teams announced, with the exception of Williams and Force India, [36] [37] that ‘they had no choice’ but to form a breakaway championship series. [37]

On twenty four June, an agreement was reached inbetween Formula One’s governing assets and the teams to prevent a breakaway series. It was agreed teams must cut spending to the level of the early 1990s within two years; exact figures were not specified, [38] and Max Mosley agreed he would not stand for re-election to the FIA presidency in October. [39] Following further disagreements after Max Mosley suggested he would stand for re-election, [40] FOTA made it clear that breakaway plans were still being pursued. On eight July, FOTA issued a press release stating they had been informed they were not entered for the two thousand ten season, [41] and an FIA press release said the FOTA representatives had walked out of the meeting. [42] On one August, it was announced FIA and FOTA had signed a fresh Concorde Agreement, bringing an end to the crisis and securing the sport’s future until 2012. [43]

The terms “Formula One race” and “World Championship race” are effectively synonymous; since 1984, every Formula One race has counted towards an official FIA World Championship, and every World Championship race has been held to Formula One regulations. [44] In the earlier history of Formula One, many races took place outside the world championship, and local championships run to Formula One regulations also occurred. These events often took place on circuits that were not suitable for the World Championship, and featured local cars and drivers as well as those rivaling in the Championship. [9]

European non-championship racing Edit

In the early years of Formula One, before the world championship was established, there were around twenty races held from late Spring to early Autumn in Europe, albeit not all of these were considered significant. Most competitive cars came from Italy, particularly Alfa Romeo. After the begin of the world championship, these non-championship races continued. In the 1950s and 1960s, there were many Formula One races which did not count for the World Championship; in one thousand nine hundred fifty a total of twenty-two Formula One races were held, of which only six counted towards the World Championship. [44] In one thousand nine hundred fifty two and 1953, when the world championship was run for Formula Two cars, non-championship events were the only Formula One races that took place.

Some races, particularly in the UK, including the Race of Champions, Oulton Park International Gold Cup and the International Trophy, were attended by the majority of the world championship contenders. Other smaller events were regularly held in locations not part of the championship, such as the Syracuse and Danish Grands Prix, albeit these only attracted a petite amount of the championship teams and relied on private entries and lower Formula cars to make up the grid. [9] These became less common through the 1970s and one thousand nine hundred eighty three eyed the last non-championship Formula One race; the one thousand nine hundred eighty three Race of Champions at Brands Hatch, won by reigning World Champ Keke Rosberg in a Williams-Cosworth in a close fight with American Danny Sullivan. [9]

South African Formula One championship Edit

South Africa’s flourishing domestic Formula One championship ran from one thousand nine hundred sixty through to 1975. The frontrunning cars in the series were recently retired from the world championship albeit there was also a healthy selection of locally built or modified machines. Frontrunning drivers from the series usually contested their local World Championship Grand Prix, as well as occasional European events, albeit they had little success at that level. [ citation needed ]

British Formula One Series Edit

The DFV helped make the UK domestic Formula One series possible inbetween one thousand nine hundred seventy eight and 1980. As in South Africa a decade before, 2nd palm cars from manufacturers like Lotus and Fittipaldi Automotive were the order of the day, albeit some, such as the March 781, were built specifically for the series. In 1980, the series witnessed South African Desiré Wilson become the only woman to win a Formula One race when she triumphed at Brands Hatch in a Wolf WR3. [45]

A Formula One Grand Prix event spans a weekend. It embarks with two free practice sessions on Friday (except in Monaco, where Friday practices are moved to Thursday), and one free practice on Saturday. Extra drivers (commonly known as third drivers) are permitted to run on Fridays, but only two cars may be used per team, requiring a race driver to give up his seat. A qualifying session is held after the last free practice session. This session determines the beginning order for the race on Sunday. [46] [47]

Tyre rules Edit

As of the two thousand sixteen season the tyre rules have switched. This had to do with Pirelli’s introduction of the fresh ultrasoft compound during the two thousand sixteen Monaco Grand Prix. [48] The FIA determines for every race which three of the total of five dry-weather compounds are to be used. In prior seasons only two compounds were available per race, the “prime” and the “option” compound.

Every driver starts the weekend with thirteen sets of tyres, at least fifteen weeks before a non-European race Pirelli will announce which three of the five dry-weather compounds are available during the weekend. For European races this is nine weeks. They also nominate two mandatory sets for the race, one of which has to be used in the race. With one of the thirteen sets being the softest and reserved for the final qualifying session. This leaves ten sets being loosely choosable by each driver. To the thirteen sets of tyres, three sets of wet-weather tyres and four sets of intermediate tyres are added. During a weekend at certain moments drivers have to palm back sets of tyres. The very first set has to be passed back after forty minutes in the very first practice session and one at the end. For the other two practice sessions two sets have to be transferred in at the end.

Qualifying Edit

For much of the sport’s history, qualifying sessions differed little from practice sessions; drivers would have one or more sessions in which to set their fastest time, with the grid order determined by each driver’s best single lap, with the fastest on pole position. Grids were generally limited to twenty six cars – if the race had more entries, qualification would also determine which drivers would embark the race. During the early 1990s, the number of entries was so high that the worst-performing teams had to come in a pre-qualifying session, with the fastest cars permitted through to the main qualifying session. The qualifying format began to switch in the late 1990s, with the FIA experimenting with limiting the number of laps, determining the aggregate time over two sessions, and permitting each driver only one qualifying lap.

The current qualifying system was adopted in the two thousand six season. Known as “knock-out” qualifying, it is split into three periods, known as Q1, Q2, and Q3. In each period, drivers run qualifying laps to attempt to advance to the next period, with the slowest drivers being “knocked out” at the end of the period and their grid positions set, based on their best lap times. Drivers are permitted as many laps as they wish within each period. After each period, all times are reset, and only a driver’s fastest lap in that period (barring infractions) counts. Any timed lap began before the end of that period may be finished, and will count toward that driver’s placement. The number of cars eliminated in each period is dependent on the total number of cars entered into the championship. [49] Presently, with twenty cars, Q1 runs for eighteen minutes, and eliminates the slowest five drivers. During this period, any driver whose best lap time exceeds 107% of the fastest time in Q1, will not be permitted to embark the race without permission from the stewards. This rule does not affect drivers in Q2 or Q3. In Q2, the fifteen remaining drivers have fifteen minutes to set one of the ten fastest times and proceed to the next period. Ultimately, Q3 lasts twelve minutes and sees the remaining ten drivers determine the very first ten grid positions. At the beginning of the two thousand sixteen Formula one season, the FIA introduced a fresh qualifying format, whereby drivers were knocked out every ninety seconds after a certain amount of time had passed in each session. The aim was to mix up grid positions for the race, but due to unpopularity the FIA reverted to the above qualifying format for the Chinese GP, after running the format for only two races. [49]

Each car taking part in Q3 receives an ‘extra’ set of the softest available tyre. This set has to be passed in after qualifying, drivers knocked out in Q1 or Q2 can use this set for the race. The very first ten drivers, i.e. the drivers through to Q3 must begin the race on the tyre which set the fastest time in Q2, unless the weather requires the use of wet-weather tyres. In which case all of the rules about the tyres won’t be followed. [50] [51] All of the drivers that did not participate in Q3 have free tyre choice for the embark of the race. Any penalties that affect grid position are applied at the end of qualifying. Grid penalties can be applied for driving infractions in the previous or current Grand Prix, or for switching a gearbox or engine component. If a car fails scrutineering, the driver will be excluded from qualifying, but will be permitted to begin the race from the back of the grid at the race steward’s discretion.

Race Edit

The race commences with a warm-up lap, after which the cars assemble on the commencing grid in the order they qualified. This lap is often referred to as the formation lap, as the cars lap in formation with no overtaking (albeit a driver who makes a mistake may regain lost ground provided he has not fallen to the back of the field). The warm-up lap permits drivers to check the condition of the track and their car, gives the tyres a chance to warm up to increase traction, and also gives the pit crews time to clear themselves and their equipment from the grid.

Once all the cars have formed on the grid, a light system above the track indicates the begin of the race: five crimson lights are illuminated at intervals of one 2nd; they are all then extinguished at the same time after an unspecified time (typically less than three seconds) to signal the commence of the race. The begin procedure may be abandoned if a driver stalls on the grid, signalled by raising his arm. If this happens, the procedure restarts: a fresh formation lap commences with the offending car liquidated from the grid. The race may also be restarted in the event of a serious accident or dangerous conditions, with the original begin voided. The race may be embarked from behind the Safety Car if officials feel a racing embark would be excessively dangerous, such as enormously strong rainfall. As of the two thousand seventeen season there will always be a standing restart. If due to strenuous rainfall a embark behind the safety car is necessary, then after the track has dried reasonably, drivers will form up for a standing embark. There is no formation lap when races begin behind the Safety Car. [52]

Under normal circumstances, the winner of the race is the very first driver to cross the finish line having finished a set number of laps. Race officials may end the race early (putting out a crimson flag) due to unsafe conditions such as extreme rainfall, and it must finish within two hours, albeit races are only likely to last this long in the case of extreme weather or if the safety car is deployed during the race.

In the 1950s, race distances varied from three hundred km (190 mi) to six hundred km (370 mi). The maximum race length was diminished to four hundred km (250 mi) in one thousand nine hundred sixty six and three hundred twenty five km (202 mi) in 1971. The race length was standardised to the current three hundred five km (190 mi) in 1989. However, street races like Monaco have shorter distances, to keep under the two hour limit.

Drivers may overtake one another for position over the course of the race and are “Classified” in the order they finished 90% of the race distance. If a leader comes across a back marker (slower car) who has finished fewer laps, the back marker is shown a blue flag [53] telling him he is obliged to permit the leader to overtake him. The slower car is said to be “lapped” and, once the leader finishes the race, is classified as completing the race “one lap down”. A driver can be lapped numerous times, by any car in front of him. A driver who fails to finish a race, through mechanical problems, accident, or any other reason is said to have retired from the race and is “Not Classified” in the results. However, if the driver has ended more than 90% of the race distance, he will be classified.

Via the race, drivers may make pit stops to switch tyres and repair harm (from one thousand nine hundred ninety four to two thousand nine inclusive, they could also refuel). Different teams and drivers employ different pit stop strategies in order to maximise their car’s potential. Three dry tyre compounds, with different durability and adhesion characteristics, are available to drivers. Over the course of a race, drivers must use two of the three available compounds. The different compounds have different levels of spectacle, and choosing when to use which compound is a key tactical decision to make. Different tyres have different colours on their sidewalls; this permits spectators to understand the strategies. Under moist conditions, drivers may switch to one of two specialised moist weather tyres with extra grooves (one “intermediate”, for mild moist conditions, such as after latest rain, one “utter moist”, for racing in or instantaneously after rain). A driver must make at least one stop to use two tyre compounds; up to three stops are typically made, albeit further stops may be necessary to fix harm or if weather conditions switch. If rain tyres are used, drivers are no longer obliged to use both types of dry tyres.

Race director As of 2017, the race director in Formula One is Charlie Whiting. This role involves him generally managing the logistics of each F1 Grand Prix, probing cars in parc fermé before a race, enforcing FIA rules and controlling the lights which begin each race. As the head of the race officials, he also plays a large role in sorting disputes amongst teams and drivers. Penalties, such as drive-through penalties (and stop-and-go penalties), demotions on a pre-race commence grid, race disqualifications, and fines can all be passed out should parties break regulations. Safety car In the event of an incident that risks the safety of competitors or trackside race marshals, race officials may choose to deploy the safety car. This in effect suspends the race, with drivers following the safety car around the track at its speed in race order, with overtaking not permitted. The safety car circulates until the danger is cleared; after it comes in, the race restarts with a “rolling commence”. Pit stops are permitted under the safety car. Mercedes-Benz supplies Mercedes-AMG models to Formula One to use as the safety cars. Since 2000, [54] the main safety car driver has been German ex-racing driver Bernd Mayländer. On the lap in which the safety car comes back to the pits, the leading car takes over the role of the safety car until the very first safety car line, which is usually a white line after the pit lane entrance. After crossing this line, drivers are permitted to embark racing for track position once more.

Flags Edit

The format of the race has switched little through Formula One’s history. The main switches have revolved around what is permitted at pit stops. In the early days of Grand Prix racing, a driver would be permitted to proceed a race in his teammate’s car should his develop a problem—in the modern era, cars are so cautiously fitted to drivers that this has become unlikely. In latest years, the emphasis has been on switching refuelling and tyre switch regulations. From the two thousand ten season, refuelling—which was reintroduced in 1994—has not been permitted, to encourage less tactical racing following safety concerns. The rule requiring both compounds of tyre to be used during the race was introduced in 2007, again to encourage racing on the track. The safety car is another relatively latest innovation that diminished the need to deploy the crimson flag, permitting races to be finished on time for a growing international live television audience.

Points system Edit

Various systems for awarding championship points have been used since 1950. The current system, in place since 2010, awards the top ten cars points in the Drivers’ and Constructors’ championships, with the winner receiving twenty five points. If both cars of a team finish in the points, they both receive Constructors’ Championship points. All points won at each race are added up, and the driver and constructor with the most points at the end of the season are crowned World Champions. Regardless of whether a driver stays with the same team via the season, or switches teams, all points earned by him count for the Drivers’ Championship. [55]

A driver must be classified to receive points. In order to be classified, a driver need not finish the race, but accomplish at least 90% of the winner’s race distance. Therefore, it is possible for a driver to receive points even if they retired before the end of the race. [56]

In the event that less than 75% of the race laps are ended by the winner, only half of the points listed in the table are awarded to the drivers and constructors. This has happened on only five occasions in the history of the championship, and it had a notable influence on the final standing of the one thousand nine hundred eighty four season. The last occurrence was at the two thousand nine Malaysian Grand Prix when the race was called off after thirty one laps due to torrential rain. [57]

Since 1981, [58] Formula One teams have been required to build the chassis in which they challenge, and consequently the terms “team” and “constructor” became more or less interchangeable. This requirement distinguishes the sport from series such as the IndyCar Series which permits teams to purchase chassis, and “spec series” such as GP2, which require all cars be kept to an identical specification. It also effectively prohibits privateers, which were common even in Formula One well into the 1970s.

The sport’s debut season, 1950, spotted eighteen teams contest, but due to high costs many dropped out quickly. In fact, such was the scarcity of competitive cars for much of the very first decade of Formula One that Formula Two cars were admitted to pack the grids. Ferrari is the oldest Formula One team, the only still-active team which competed in 1950.

Early manufacturer involvement came in the form of a “factory team” or “works team” (that is, one wielded and staffed by a major car company), such as those of Alfa Romeo, Ferrari, or Renault. After having virtually disappeared by the early 1980s, factory teams made a comeback in the 1990s and 2000s and formed up to half the grid with Ferrari, Jaguar, BMW, Renault, Toyota, and Honda either setting up their own teams or buying out existing ones. Mercedes-Benz wielded 40% of the McLaren team and manufactured the team’s engines. Factory teams make up the top competitive teams; in two thousand eight wholly possessed factory teams took four of the top five positions in the Constructors’ Championship, and McLaren the other. Ferrari holds the record for having won the most Constructors’ Championships (sixteen). However, by the end of the 2000s factory teams were once again on the decline with only Ferrari, Mercedes-Benz and Renault lodging entries to the two thousand ten championship.

Companies such as Orgasm, Repco, Cosworth, Hart, Judd and Supertec, which had no direct team affiliation, often sold engines to teams that could not afford to manufacture them. In the early years, independently wielded Formula One teams sometimes also built their engines, tho’ this became less common with the enlargened involvement of major car manufacturers such as BMW, Ferrari, Honda, Mercedes-Benz, Renault, and Toyota, whose large budgets rendered privately built engines less competitive. Cosworth was the last independent engine supplier. Beginning in 2007, the manufacturers’ deep pockets and engineering capability took over, eliminating the last of the independent engine manufacturers. [59] It is estimated the major teams spend inbetween €100 and €200 million ($125–$225 million) per year per manufacturer on engines alone. [60]

In the two thousand seven season, for the very first time since the one thousand nine hundred eighty one rule, two teams used chassis built by other teams. Super Aguri embarked the season using a modified Honda Racing RA106 chassis (used by Honda the previous year), while Scuderia Toro Rosso used the same chassis used by the parent Crimson Bull Racing team, which was formally designed by a separate subsidiary. The usage of these loopholes was ended for two thousand ten with the publication of fresh technical regulations, which require each constructor to own the intellectual property rights to their chassis, [61] which prevents a team using a chassis wielded by another Formula One constructor. [62] The regulations proceed to permit a team to subcontract the design and construction of the chassis to a third-party, an option used by the HRT team in 2010.

Albeit teams uncommonly disclose information about their budgets, it is estimated they range from US$66 million to US$400 million each. [63]

Coming in a fresh team in the Formula One World Championship requires a £25 million (about US$47 million) up-front payment to the FIA, which is then repaid to the team over the course of the season. As a consequence, constructors desiring to inject Formula One often choose to buy an existing team: B.A.R.’s purchase of Tyrrell and Midland’s purchase of Jordan permitted both of these teams to sidestep the large deposit and secure the benefits the team already had, such as TV revenue.

Every team in Formula One must run two cars in every session in a Grand Prix weekend, and every team may use up to four drivers in a season. [47] A team may also run two extra drivers in Free Practice sessions, [47] which are often used to test potential fresh drivers for a career as a Formula One driver or build up experienced drivers to evaluate the car. [64] [65] Most modern drivers are contracted for at least the duration of a season, with driver switches taking place in inbetween seasons, in comparison to early years where drivers often competed at an ad hoc basis from race to race. Each competitor must be in the possession of a FIA Super Licence to challenge in a Grand Prix, [66] which is issued to drivers who have met the criteria of success in junior motorsport categories and having achieved three hundred kilometres (190 mi) of running in a Formula One car. Drivers may also be issued a Super Licence by the World Motor Sport Council if they fail to meet the criteria. [66] Teams also contract test and reserve drivers, to stand in for regular drivers when necessary and develop the team’s car; albeit with the reduction on testing the reserve drivers’ role mainly takes places on a simulator, [67] such as rFactor Pro, [68] [Sixty nine] which is used by most of the F1 teams. [70] [71] Albeit most drivers earn their seat on capability, commercial considerations also come into play with teams having to sate sponsors and financial requests.

Each driver chooses an unassigned number from two to ninety nine (excluding 17) [72] upon coming in Formula One, and keeps that number during his time in the series. The number one is reserved for the reigning Drivers’ Champ, who retains his previous number and may choose to (but doesn’t have to) use it instead of the number one. [73] At the onset of the championship, numbers were allocated by race organisers on an ad-hoc basis from race to race, and competitors did not have a permanent number via the season. [74] Permanent numbers were introduced in one thousand nine hundred seventy three to take effect in 1974, when teams were allocated numbers in ascending order based on the Constructors’ Championship standings at the end of the one thousand nine hundred seventy three season. The teams would hold those numbers from season to season with the exception of the team with the world Drivers’ Champ, which would exchange its numbers with the one and two of the previous champ’s team. Fresh entrants were allocated spare numbers, with the exception of the number thirteen which had been unused since 1976. [75] As teams kept their numbers for long periods of time, car numbers became associated with a team, such as Ferrari’s twenty seven and 28. [74] A different system was used from one thousand nine hundred ninety six to 2013: at the commence of each season, the current Drivers’ Champ was designated number one, his teammate number two, and the rest of the teams assigned ascending numbers according to previous season’s Constructors’ Championship order. [76]

A total of thirty three separate drivers have won the world championship, with Michael Schumacher holding the record for most championships with seven, as well as holding the race wins and pole position records. Juan Manuel Fangio has won the next most, with five championships won during the 1950s, as well as having won the greatest percentage of wins, with twenty four out of fifty two entries. Jochen Rindt is the only posthumous World Champ, after his points total was not overhauled despite his fatal accident at the one thousand nine hundred seventy Italian Grand Prix. Drivers from the United Kingdom have been the most successful in the sport, with fourteen championships from ten drivers, and two hundred fourteen wins from Nineteen.

Feeder series Edit

Most F1 drivers begin in kart racing competitions, and then come up through traditional European single seater series like Formula Ford and Formula Renault to Formula Trio, and eventually the GP2 Series. GP2 began in 2005, substituting Formula 3000, which itself had substituted Formula Two as the last major stepping-stone into F1. Most champions from this level graduate into F1, but two thousand six GP2 champ Lewis Hamilton became the very first F2, F3000 or GP2 champ to win the Formula One driver’s title in 2008. [77] Drivers are not required to have competed at this level before coming in Formula One. British F3 has supplied many F1 drivers, with champions including Nigel Mansell, Ayrton Senna and Mika Häkkinen having moved straight from that series to Formula One. More uncommonly a driver may be picked from an even lower level, as was the case with two thousand seven World Champ Kimi Räikkönen, who went straight from Formula Renault to F1, as well as Max Verstappen, who made his debut following a single season in European F3. [78]

American Championship Car Racing has also contributed to the Formula One grid with mixed results. CART Champions Mario Andretti and Jacques Villeneuve became F1 World Champions, while Juan Pablo Montoya won seven races in F1. Other CART (also known as ChampCar) Champions, like Michael Andretti and Alessandro Zanardi won no races in F1. Other drivers have taken different paths to F1; Damon Hill raced motorbikes, and Michael Schumacher raced in sports cars, albeit after climbing through the junior single seater ranks. Former F1 driver Paul di Resta raced in DTM until he was signed with Force India in 2011. To race, however, the driver must hold an FIA Super Licence–ensuring that the driver has the requisite abilities, and will not therefore be a danger to others. Some drivers have not had the licence when very first signed to a F1 team; Räikkönen received the licence despite having only twenty three car races to his credit.

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