Rule Changes
- 2011 saw the return of the 107% rule in qualifying. Under this arrangement, any driver who fails to set a time within 107% of the fastest lap in Q1 may not be permitted to take part in the race; for instance, if the fastest lap is 1 minute 40 seconds (100 seconds), a driver must set a time faster than 1 minute 47 seconds (107 seconds) in order to make it to the grid. However, if a driver who fails to set an appropriate lap time can show cause for his inclusion in the race – for example, if a driver failed to set a lap time in qualifying due to a mechanical fault, but had previously set a lap time within 107% of the pole-sitter's time in free practice – the stewards may allow that driver to take part in the race.
- The ban on team orders – the practice of teams ordering a driver to follow instructions that would be advantageous to their team mate (for example, ordering them to move aside and allow their team-mate to pass them) – was lifted after the 2010 German Grand Prix, with the practice to be "regulated" on the race track. The practice of coding instructions to conceal the nature of the order would be banned to prevent deception to the spectators and stewards. The FIA increased the maximum allowable penalty which racing stewards can issue to teams from $100,000 to $250,000.
- Sole tyre supplier Bridgestone announced that it would not renew its contract with Formula One at the end of the 2010 season, with Pirelli chosen as the tyre supplier for 2011 by the FIA World Motor Sport Council. The Pirelli logo on each tyre will be colour-coded to identify each compound and tread pattern being used. Cars will have a mandatory weight distribution to provide Pirelli with a technical specification, and preventing teams making changes to the internal configuration of their cars should they prove not to suit the cars. At the final test in Barcelona, it was revealed that drivers would need to make three pit stops at most races, in line with Pirelli's mandate to design a higher wearing tyre.
- The Belgian Grand Prix saw a small controversy when several teams discovered their tyres had blistered during qualifying, but were not permitted to change their tyres ahead of the race because the damage was the result of the car set-up rather than an accident. Pirelli pointed to Red Bull Racing's practice of running camber settings that were outside their recommended parameters as the cause of the blistering, and said they would be more cautious with their recommendations for Monza to prevent the problem from arising again. Pirelli stated that they were willing to turn to the FIA to enforce camber limits if there was any evidence of blistering after the Free Practice sessions in Italy. The FIA later announced that Pirelli's camber limits were mandatory and that any team who failed to observe them would be reported to the stewards under Article 2.3 of the sport's technical regulations for dangerous construction and would risk exclusion from the race.
- The maximum height of the diffuser will be cut from 175 millimetres (6.9 in) to 125 millimetres (4.9 in) and the double diffuser designs, introduced in the 2009 season, will be excluded, in order to reduce aerodynamic downforce and turbulent air. Banned with this are double exhaust-blown diffusers, which use exhaust gases re-routed over the diffuser to increase downforce, although single blown diffusers are still allowed. Contoversy emerged over the use of "off-throttle blown diffusers" early in the season, with the FIA first banning the concept and then repealing the ban pending discussion with the teams. The off-throttle blown diffuser increases downforce by keeping the engine spinning while the car is under braking, channeling hot exhaust gasses over the diffuser and allowing for higher cornering speeds. The FIA announced that the ban would be reintroduced from the British Grand Prix, limiting the amount of throttle that can be applied during braking. Tighter restrictions will be introduced for the 2012 season. At the European Grand Prix – two weeks before the British Grand Prix – a further ban was introduced, prohibiting teams from using "extreme" engine maps in qualifying that they would not normally use in races, effectively forcing teams to use the same engine maps in both qualifying and the race. The FIA has estimated that the clampdown on extreme engine maps will cost some teams up to half a second per lap in qualifying alone. The mid-season ban was later repealed when several teams applied for concessions to the ban, which were granted and subsequently revoked following protests from other teams. An agreement signed after the British Grand Prix abandoned the ban for the 2011 season entirely, restoring the pre-Valencia rules.
- The "F-duct" system developed by McLaren and copied by other teams was banned, as the system relying on drivers blocking a gap in the cockpit was judged unsafe. The Drag Reduction System (DRS), an adjustable rear wing designed to increase straight line speed, was introduced in the 2011 rules. The system operates under a similar principle to the "F-duct", and is designed to aid overtaking by negating all downforce flowing over the rear wing. The rules dictate that the DRS is only available to a driver within one second of the car in front on a marked designated area of the circuit, after the first two laps of a race. Use of the DRS is unlimited in free practice and qualifying, but prohibited in wet conditions. The system is expected to offer drivers an additional 15 km/h (9.3 mph) when passing, and will deactivate when the driver first touches the brakes after using the rear wing. At the Spanish Grand Prix, the FIA announced plans for a secondary DRS zone to be included on a circuit from the Canadian Grand Prix onwards.
- The number of wheel tethers – the load-bearing cables connecting the wheel hubs to the bodywork – will be doubled for 2011, in response to an increasing number of accidents where wheels have been torn free of their mountings, including the death of Henry Surtees in a Formula Two race at Brands Hatch in 2009.
- Several smaller aerodynamic devices introduced for 2010 have also been banned, including aerodynamic wheel spokes, flexible front splitters designed to lower front ride height, and modifications to the monocoque that create a V-shaped channel running the length of the car's nose. The maximum aspect ratio of the "bladed" rollbar structure – pioneered by Mercedes to decrease the obstruction of air to the rear wing – has also been reduced. The 2011 Lotus T128 and Force India VJM04 cars were both launched with a similar device, based on the same principle as the Mercedes device, but the Lotus and Force India variants are legal under the rules because the blade structure is thicker than the one developed by Mercedes.
- KERS units will be optional for all teams, after not being utilised in 2010 following a team agreement banning the devices, and the minimum car weight increases from 620 kilograms (1,367 lb) to 640 kilograms (1,411 lb), compensating for the extra weight required. Gearboxes must also last for five races instead of four, with an additional gearbox available without penalty for the purposes of completing an event.
- At the Hungarian Grand Prix, the FIA introduced new software to track the cars in order to better spot racing incidents and provide the stewards with real-time information about drivers breaking rules. The software was introduced in response to an incident at the German Grand Prix that saw Sébastien Buemi and Nick Heidfeld collide on the tenth lap of the Grand Prix, ending Heidfeld's race, but no penalty was issued to Buemi until after the race had ended.
- The FIA has tightened its driving standards, moving to prevent overly aggressive driving and driving beyond the boundaries of the circuit to gain an advantage by implementing stricter penalties for drivers observed to be doing so. Drivers are limited in the number of blocking moves they can make on track, to allow easier overtaking.
- At the Korean Grand Prix, the FIA announced plans to introduce a stricter version of the "one move" defensive driver rule, in light of a protracted on-track battle between Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton at the Italian Grand Prix. Under the original set of rules, a defending driver would be entitled to make one move across the circuit to select their racing line into an approaching corner; under the regulations introduced for the Korean Grand Prix, a defending driver would be obligated to leave enough space – defined as "one car's width" – on the outside of a corner for an attacking driver to occupy, preventing the defending driver from forcing his rival off the circuit.
- Further rule amendments granted greater powers to the race stewards. This was reported as a response to a series of on-track incidents involving Lewis Hamilton that culminated in several drive-through penalties; Hamilton received six driver penalties over the course of the 2011 season, setting a new record for the most penalties in a season. From the Korean Grand Prix on, the stewards will have the power to issue reprimands alongside penalties, with a grid penalty being awarded after three reprimands.
- A curfew has been implemented for team personnel, barring them from accessing the circuit in the nine hours before the first session of the day The rule was introduced following concerns over mechanics spending all night in the pit garage before spending the day in the busy pit lane, with four exceptions allowed for the season. In the event that this rule is broken after all four exceptions have been used, both cars for the offending team must start the race from pit lane. The rule attracted criticism at the Singapore Grand Prix when several teams inadvertently broke curfew, using up one of their four exceptions when members of the teams' marketing divisions arrived early at the circuit.
- Team members deemed to be in key roles will have to undergo accreditation for a "competitors' staff licence" in order to maintain their positions within their teams. This is seen as a reaction to the actions of disgraced former Renault team principal Flavio Briatore at the controversial 2008 Singapore Grand Prix and applies to key staff in all FIA-sanctioned World Championships including Formula One.
Read more about this topic: 2011 Formula One Season
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