The FIA has introduced updated regulations regarding jump starts in Formula 1, aiming to address concerns about car movements that may not have been detected by onboard sensors.
The media first disclosed discussions among teams during the Chinese Grand Prix weekend regarding a modification to the rules to clarify certain aspects that had caused uncertainties.
Previously, jump starts were solely determined by whether the sensors installed in cars by the FIA had detected any movement before the signal to start was given.
However, there were instances where cars seemed to have moved before the race began but escaped penalties because the sensors did not register any infringement.
One notable case was Lando Norris during this year’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, where he briefly moved forward before stopping, yet was not penalized as the sensor did not indicate any violation.
Following deliberations among sporting directors and team principals at the recent F1 Commission meeting, it has been unanimously decided to amend the regulations promptly. The revised Article 48 of F1’s Sporting Regulations, now titled “False Start,” outlines the new criteria for assessing rule breaches.
The previous language, which relied on the findings of the transponder to determine jump starts, has been removed. Instead, the revised 48.1 a) now specifies that an offense occurs if a driver moves after the four-second light is illuminated but before the start signal is given by extinguishing all red lights.
While Norris’ incident in Saudi Arabia is the most recent example, several drivers in recent years have been flagged for appearing to move before the lights went out without triggering the sensor.
Instances include Valtteri Bottas in the 2020 Hungarian Grand Prix and Sebastian Vettel in Japan the year before, both of whom were cleared despite apparent movements.
Additionally, the updated sporting regulations released by the FIA include a provision aimed at incentivizing teams to utilize intermediate tires during rainy practice sessions.
At the Japanese Grand Prix last month, teams refrained from running in the rain-hit second free practice session due to a flaw in the existing wet tire rules, which led to concerns about tire usage for the rest of the weekend.
To address this issue, a tweak to the regulations now mandates that if a practice session is declared wet, one set of intermediate tires must be returned before qualifying, out of the five sets allocated to each driver.
The new Article 30.5 g) stipulates: “From the five sets of intermediate tires allocated to each driver, if P1, P2, or P3 is declared wet, one set of intermediate tires must be electronically returned no later than two hours after the end of P3.”
While this adjustment does not eliminate the risks associated with running in wet practice sessions, it does mitigate the potential downsides of additional running affecting the remainder of the weekend.
