In the FIA official press conference prior to the Austrian GP you asked for the fans to come together and let you know how they would improve F1. So I asked my Twitter followers and Facebook ‘likers’ to see how the Formula One fans would like to see the sport changed. The responses are wide and varied so I have listed them below. I hope that some of this helps and gives you an idea of the thoughts of the public.
Reduce F1 to a 2 day weekend format but with 25 race weekends a year? Include a sprint race on a saturday?
Bring back fat tyres & skinny wings – decrease the reliance on aerodynamics (should make it easier to follow in the wake of another car)
Use the free F1 app to include in-race poll’s on events and incidents, display results in world feed
Make the whole contents of the F1 app free, a paid version should just be to get rid of ads. It needs to be free for fans to keep up with the sport.
Where it is not possible to have free-to-air coverage, allow free to air full replays of races
Why is there not an active F1 official tweeter at all events, catching sneaky photos from the pitlane or the stewards office etc, it’d gain millions of followers and be a great platform to promote official F1 partnerships etc
Allow fans better access at race weekends? Make drivers more available to the public
Joanne HersomI personally think the rules need to be a bit less fervent, I think the drivers should just be allowed to race and unless somebody does something that is so dangerous as to cause injury etc or blatant cheating on track then I don’t think the stewards should get involved, just let them race! Also think the tyres should be changed so that drivers can actually race each other lap after lap with no backing off to save the tyres and I agree with previous comments that points should be awarded for passes
Tony CrowtherReduce pit crews to 6 people, 2 jackmen and 1 person per wheel, would really mix it up for top teams whilst also significantly reducing costs by reducing crew costs for flights and hotels, would really help small teams.
Tony CrowtherAfter qualifying put 1 -5 into hat for random draw, 6-10, 11- 16 & 17 – 22 also, would certainly mix up the established order without using completely reversed grid, would mix order without putting Caterhams and Marusia right up front!
Keith HughesPaul – for me, the rediculously complicated front wings need banning. Have a standard design with the usual minor adjustments. Save a fortune on all the crazy aero that just stops overtaking & doesn’t really transfer to road cars. Get back to power unit development & mechanical grip which benefits real world and get back to racing again. (uzicebu)
Tony CrowtherI would like to see a “joker” lap like in World RallyCross, but used maybe once every 10 laps, but most circuits would need major modification, however if Bernie can make circuits spend millions of dollars on floodlights then should be possible.
Duurt DijkmanDRS + powerboost combined to use just once per lap, free of choice where to use it. DRS enabled from lap5 and disabled starting 5 laps before finish. Free tyrechoice from the whole range, teams choice. Warm-up practice on sunday morning to get things started and atract more fans. Open paddock / pitlane on friday would bring fans closer to the sport and what it all means to operate on that high level. Just a few thoughts from me.
Newton Nascimento JuniorThe engines should last longer to allow them to drive fast all the time. Saving fuel or engine or tires have nothing to do with racing.
TopTop PhavitBring back Refueling, go back to V10 engine, free qualifying session (same as 19 century), opt out all that rules that is too strict. In other word, go back to the Formula 1 as it was.
Ben BushellActive suspension and allow any size engines… Give the teams as many variables as they need to be either lighter or more powerful, equalling a more interesting f1 …
Lee BelbinTalented drivers coming through, not pay drivers. More noise. Drivers having or at least being able to push 100% every lap. Maybe consider championship ballast or a reverse grid similar to btcc.
Dougal Richard ShakespeareAllow them to be inventive stop banning good ideas. Let them test. Forget all money stuff if you cant afford it get out would prefer to see 8 fast as can be cars battle it out than 22 plod round
Bettina Fisher HoulahanBring back refuelling and change back the engines, i would like to see more behind the seen stuff not just the practice races but set ups and also more driver interviews to get their thoughts on that race ahead
Paul GawneWhat sort of coverage would you like to see Phil? BBC show half of the races live & the other half have extended highlights in a prime time slot. Of course there is also the f1 chanel for those that have Sky sports which shows a classic race every night as well as every session live + highlights and various new content and shows every week
Sarah ReedWell it does look pretty sexy but I think the innovation is missing now; all the cars look the same, perform the same. I want the excitement of the new. There are too many rules and restrictions in my opinion.
Sarah ReedI don’t know, for me it seems like the magic has gone. I may be just putting on my rose-tinted spectacles but things seemed more exciting with Senna, Prost, Mansell, Hill, Schumacher, Barrichello, Alesi et al all duking it out for pole. Maybe we need more characters?
Last weekend Charles Leclerc suffered an MGU-H and turbo failure that cost him victory in the Spanish GP, and which Ferrari has already addressed.However in FP1 at the Monaco GP Mick Schumacher of Haas and Valtteri Bottas of Alfa Romeo both suffered MGU-K failures that cost them track time and required their gearboxes to be replaced […]
Amid growing indications that a South African race in Kyalami is F1’s next target, and potentially as early as next year if the logistics can be sorted, it is looking increasingly likely that there will be some form of calendar shake up on the cards.The F1 schedule is currently capped at 24 races, and the […]
With less than three minutes left on the clock Leclerc demoted Perez to second, but the Mexican responded in the dying seconds to go top with a 1m12.476s lap, 0.041s quicker than Leclerc.Williams' Nicholas Latifi and Alpine's Fernando Alonso set the first lap times in F1's third and final practice session on the sunny streets […]
A dramatic rise in inflation and freight costs this year has put team budgets under pressure, and a number of squads are concerned that they are going to be unable to stay below F1’s $140 million limit for 2022.Red Bull team boss Christian Horner suggested that the scale of the problem was serious enough for […]
Teams are currently in talks with the FIA and F1 about increasing the budget cap due to the pressures of inflation and rising freight costs resulting from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February.Ferrari F1 boss Mattia Binotto admitted on Saturday in Monaco his team would exceed the budget cap this year, while Red Bull’s Christian […]
