The FIA has announced that following a series of meetings between the F1 Strategy Group and the F1 Commission a number of proposals for the future look of the sport have being agreed upon. The aim of the proposals is to deliver a faster, more spectacular FIA Formula One World Championship.
As part of the revisions, the outgoing qualifying format is to be introduced, potentially as soon as the beginning of the 2016 season. The new qualifying proposal works on an ‘elimination’ format which will see drivers eliminated every 1m 30, after a set run period at the start of the session. 15 drivers will make it through to the second, from which a final eight will progress to the final session. The final elimination in each session occurs at the chequered flag – not when time is up.
Another new proposal that has been green-lighted, is the ‘Driver of the Day’ award, which is to be implemented by the Commercial Rights Holder in conjunction with Formula One broadcasters.
In a bid to finally engage more with viewers, fans will be encouraged to vote online for their “Driver of the Day” throughout a grand prix, with the winner to be announced as part of the race broadcast immediately following the conclusion of the race.
The biggest discussion point of the Geneva meetings, however, is the finalisation of the 2017 Sporting and Technical Regulations for the sport. However, this decision has been postponed until 30 April, 2016.
Despite this, a number of proposals have been agreed upon, which all aim to deliver additional downforce to increase speeds and lower lap times. The proposals are summarised in the table below:
The final discussion point for the F1 Commission is the ongoing debate around improving cockpit safety. The FIA has announced that all stakeholders are ‘working together to make this a reality’, with the “Halo” concept currently the preferred option. Other options, such as transparent cockpit protection, will continue to be evaluated.
