Who'd be a F1 driver in 2010?

[TheOldhamWhisper]

As if the sport isn't hard enough already, the powers that be have decided that from next year refuelling will not be allowed in pit stops. This will effectively add another 20% in weight to the car at the start of the race.

What does this mean in real terms? It's a bit like driving your car at full speed towards a blind bend and just about getting away with it...only to find that next time you are heading at full speed to the same place, you are at the wheel of a double decker bus carrying a couple of kilos of nitro-glycerene!

Even with todays technology and lightweights, cars struggle to get brakes up to temperature and weaving from side to side certainly doesn't get any easier if you are carrying an extra 100+ kilos of liquid sloshing about!

What will it take for the FIA to realise that this is a huge step backwards in race safety? Another horrifying video of a Nikki Lauda-like incident?

[mathare]

It also takes out some of the tactical element of racing, timing of pit stops etc. Sure, they still need to change tyres etc but teams could vary the amount of fuel they added to a car at these pit stops and change strategy that way but will they still have that option? I don't think they will, not to the same degree anyway.

The FIA want to make the sport more exciting etc and then we have ideas such as this one

[CharlesBarkley]

I don't think it will make it any more dangerous, the cars and circuits are now safer than ever. Cars just don't crash and explode into flames like in years gone by. Circuits now have large run off areas and more chicanes

[Win2Win]

I've been waiting for them to bring this rule back in for years, for the majority of F1 history, all cars carried a full fuel load, putting more reliance on the driver winning the race, rather than the pit crew. It will also mean that qualifying isn't a farce as it is now, with teams carrying different weights of fuel.

This rule only came in during the 90's for no other reason than safety, and they are now as safe as you can get them regardless of how much fuel they carry.

[mathare]

But it does mean they need to mess with qualifying yet again. The current format was supposed to make it more exciting to the end and give teams goals throughout the qualifying period (getting to the next stage). What will they do now?

[Mattw07]

But it does mean they need to mess with qualifying yet again. The current format was supposed to make it more exciting to the end and give teams goals throughout the qualifying period (getting to the next stage). What will they do now?

What do you think of qualifying the way it is now? seems to drag on to much for me.

[Win2Win]

But it does mean they need to mess with qualifying yet again. The current format was supposed to make it more exciting to the end and give teams goals throughout the qualifying period (getting to the next stage). What will they do now?

They fill the tank, and go all out to qualify, fastest gets pole, all carrying within the same weight limit, how it was done pre-mid 90's for decades, and how it is done in many other motor sports to this day.

[TheOldhamWhisper]

Let's hope it doesn't rain much - if it does, no driver will even need to make a single pitstop!

Cars just don't crash and explode into flames like in years gone by.

But is it worth the risk of adding back in the one factor that was designed specifically to avoid it? When a plane is expecting to make an emergency landing, it dumps as much fuel as possible before it attempts it!

[TheOldhamWhisper]

What do you think of qualifying the way it is now? seems to drag on to much for me.

Compared with years gone by where no cars even bothered to go out in the first 45 minutes of a one hour session (unless rain was forcast), I think anything is an improvement!

[scoobydoo]

I'm not up on Motor Racing like a few of you on here but why the heck are they always tinkering with the rules...seems to happen too often???

[mathare]

I don't really see the attraction of qualifying, although I often watch it.

Why don't they all have a maximum number of 'hot' laps and use that to decide the grid? Say 3 runs of 3 laps each - out lap, fast lap and then in lap. Then either use the fastest of your times or average them or something.

[mathare]

why the heck are they always tinkering with the rules...seems to happen too often???

They do seem to mess with the rules a lot, not really sure why. A lot of the changes over the years have been safety related but now they are trying to also cut costs to allow more teams to compete. It does seem like every year they have a number of new rules though. I don't remember it being like this when I first started watching it in the early 90s.

[scoobydoo]

They do seem to mess with the rules a lot, not really sure why. A lot of the changes over the years have been safety related but now they are trying to also cut costs to allow more teams to compete. It does seem like every year they have a number of new rules though. I don't remember it being like this when I first started watching it in the early 90s.

I can understand the cutting of costs I guess. Are the rule changes solely to blame for Ferrari and McLaren's poor start to the season then? The sport has been turned upside down hasnt it?

[Win2Win]

Are the rule changes solely to blame for Ferrari and McLaren's poor start to the season then?

Yes, as they are no longer able to get a decent head start.

The sport has been turned upside down hasnt it?

Not really, it has brought the teams closer together, previously we used to have 2-3 seperate races per race! Now we have A race.

[scoobydoo]

Not really, it has brought the teams closer together, previously we used to have 2-3 seperate races per race! Now we have A race.

I guess from that point of view, people have wanted that for years haven't they? I wonder how Schumacher would've got it with these new rules in place-of course he could've been in the Brawn car! :)