The F1 Commission has approved several updates ahead of the 2023 season, including new wet weather tyre specifications from Imola onwards and relaxed rules on radio communications from teams to drivers
Last Updated: 21/02/23 10:23pm
Red Bull driver Max Verstappen won the Japanese GP in confusing circumstances to secure his second title
F1 has rewritten a rule to ensure reduced points are given for shortened races, following Red Bull’s Max Verstappen clinching his second title in confusing circumstances last season.
The Formula 1 commission, which groups the 10 teams and governing FIA as well as the commercial rights holder, met in London on Tuesday ahead of next week’s season-opening race in Bahrain.
A statement of key decisions – to be rubber-stamped by the FIA’s World Motor Sport Council – included a change of wording “to ensure that shorter races have reduced points even if they don’t finish with a suspended race.”
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Ted Kravitz explains how the confusing finish to the Japanese Grand Prix led to Max Verstappen becoming two-time world champion
Last year’s rain-hit Japanese race was halted after two laps and resumed more than two hours later, where 28 of the scheduled 53 laps were completed and even Verstappen was unsure how many points he had won.
It turned out to be full points, enough for Verstappen to clinch the title with four races to spare. The FIA explained at the time that the reduced points rule only applied when a race was suspended and could not be resumed.
The commission also agreed “to relax the regulation of radio messages to and from the drivers at all times during a competition.”
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It said a change to wet weather tyres had been approved, with Pirelli producing a new compound that performed better and did not require the use of tyre blankets used to get tyres up to temperature. This will be introduced from Imola in May.
What else has changed?
Bahrain, Jeddah, Melbourne, Baku and Miami will have changes to the Drag Reduction System (DRS) zone to make overtaking either easier or harder, while Melbourne will have a fourth DRS activation zone.
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Teams and engine manufacturers will have a winter factory shutdown in 2023, in addition to the August break.
A cost cap adjustment was agreed to allow teams to spend an extra $1.2 million, on top of a base of $135 million for the season, to reflect the calendar stretching to a record 23 rounds and those added being long-haul and more expensive.
The rules were tweaked also “to allow easier access to the factories for the FIA auditing team, in order to police the adherence of the teams and PU (Power Unit) manufacturers to the financial regulations”.
The meeting was chaired by Formula One chief executive Stefano Domenicali and FIA single-seater director Nikolas Tombazis. FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem, who has agreed to stand back from day-to-day running of the sport after recent controversies, did not attend.
When and where is testing?
Testing will take place in Bahrain over three successive days, starting on Thursday, 23 February and finishing on Saturday, 25 February, with each day split into two extended sessions.
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The Bahrain International Circuit makes sense as a testing venue given its status as the host of the opening race on the F1 calendar, which this year takes place on March 5.
You can watch live coverage of every minute of pre-season testing on Sky Sports F1, along with a daily wrap and special testing edition of Ted’s Notebook.
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The full television schedule is as follows:
Thursday 23 February
Session One – 6:50am-11am
Session Two – 11:50am-4:30pm
Testing Wrap – 8pm-8:30pm
Ted’s Testing Notebook – 8:30pm-9pm
Friday 24 February
Session One – 6:50am-11am
Session Two – 11:50am-4:30pm
Testing Wrap – 8pm-8:30pm
Ted’s Testing Notebook – 8:30pm-9pm
Saturday 25 February
Session One – 6:50am-11am
Session Two – 11:50am-4:30pm
Testing Wrap – 8pm-8:30pm
Ted’s Testing Notebook – 8:30pm-9pm
There will also be regular updates throughout testing on Sky Sports News, with reporter Craig Slater in Bahrain keeping an eye on what’s going on both on and off the track.
Finally, you can follow every moment of testing right here on the Sky Sports App and website, with a live blog bringing you updates and the best video.
