New Details Emerge Regarding 2014 F1 Qualifying Tweaks – Bring It…
New details of the plan to spice up Formula 1 qualifying for the 2014 season have emerged.
At a meeting in Bahrain scheduled for 21 February, Formula 1′s major players will move to ensure that the final Q3 segment is exciting under the radically different regulations.
The fear is that, to preserve tyres and for reasons of reliability, drivers may sit out the session for tactical reasons.
It was reported that a likely solution would be to supply drivers with an extra set of tyres for the final ‘Q3′ hitout.
Writing in Autosprint, correspondent Roberto Chinchero said the extra set, only eligible to be used in Q3, will be the ‘option’ – or fastest – tyre.
According to the reported proposal, drivers will also be encouraged to push hard in Q3 by ending the rule that required cars to start the race on the last tyre used in the top-ten shoot out.
Now, top-ten drivers will start on the tyre with which they set their best Q2 time.
The Q3 changes, likely to increase track activity, will mean the session is extended from 10 to 12 minutes, giving drivers more time to fit in their additional ‘runs’.
The lengthened Q3 will mean that Q1 is reduced from 20 to 18 minutes.
Meanwhile, for drivers who do not make it into Q3, they will be given an extra set of ‘Option’ tyres for the race, also discouraging them from saving tyres in qualifying. (GMM)
MyTake
My first thought was, it’s not broken don’t try to fix it. I can remember some pretty horrible versions of qualifying prior to the current knock-out style which I think it is safe to say has been a huge success. Does anyone recall the ridiculous version were each driver was given the chance at two hot laps, one in order and then one in reverse order? It was is simply awful. This current iteration is such a success, from what I understand NASCAR will have a similar version in their racing series.
Then I read further and I like what I am seeing. An extra set of Q3 tires and two more minutes (I have always felt 10 minutes was just too short for the final shot-out) so the top teams and drivers can really go for it. How many times did we see last year Sebastian Vettel not run in Q3 or at least abandon his final try? I’m pretty sure several teams took this tactic due to the nature of strategy for Sunday’s race. The series’s best qualifiers, Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel should be going at it tong and hammer every Saturday with the occasional Alonso, Raikkonen, and Button (there are more of course) thrown in for good measure.
-jp-
AmerF1can 