New Year, New Rules
If you are anything like us then you will be VERY excited for the season to begin and you’ll be missing out on the racing action. So, it’s probably a great time for you to be brushing up on the new rules for this season! As you probably know, 2021 was meant to be the year that the radical regulations were to be introduced to bring the teams closer together for a more competitive championship but due to COVID-19, these changes have been postponed to 2022. However, there is still a multitude of changes coming our way.
Pic @astonmartinF1
Cost Cap
The first-ever cost cap is coming this season - probably the biggest and most sought after regulation change from fans and drivers alike. The baseline is set at $145 million and this will be reduced again in 2022 to $140 million. This cap has been introduced to allow for more equal competition and covers all aspects of running a Formula One team (except marketing costs & driver salaries of course).
2. Brake Duct Winglets
This is a minor change this season but it may have a large impact overall. This season the rear brake duct winglets on the cars have to be shortened from 120mm to 80mm. These winglets are necessary to create a downforce that is directed to the wheels, so, could cause a big difference this year.
3. Car Floors
We think this will be an obvious change that we fans will be able to visually see this year. The car’s floor shape is to be altered and the floor must now be solid but are to feature triangular cuts on the back end which will reduce the downforce-generating surface area on the cars.
Pic @ racefans.com
4. Diffuser Fences
Another change by the FIA to reduce downforce is the shortening of the diffuser fences by 50mm. This makes the floor seal less effective. The key role of a diffuser is to accelerate airflow under the car to create an area of low pressure, thus increasing downforce. I.e, this bit of equipment is “sucking” the car to the track for increased grip. Below is a diagram that explains how these fencers work to optimise downforce and it may give you a better idea of how shortening them, will reduce the capabilities of the car.
Pic @ Racecar-engineer.com
5. Aerodynamic Testing Scale
A new development this season will be the introduction of sliding scale aerodynamic testing regulations (ATR) - important as the teams move forwards with car plans for 2022 regulation changes.
“Put simply, the lower a team finished in the championship table in 2020, the more time they’ll be afforded to hone the aerodynamics of their 2022 car, be that in the wind tunnel or with their Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations. You can see exactly how that works in the table below – with Mercedes set to get the least simulation time in 2021, while Williams get the most. Those changes, meanwhile, will be even more pronounced from 2022 onwards.” - Formula 1
6. Copying Parts
We all know what happened with Racing Point copying Mercedes W10 from 2019, so, the technical regulations have moved to ensure there is no possibility to repeat the copying tactic moving forward. The rules now state that “although it is permissible to be influenced by the design or concept” of a rival team’s car and its individual, exclusive components (called ‘Listed Team Components’, or LTCs, in the regulations), any information used to create your own car’s parts “must potentially be available to all competitors” and “only be obtained at events or tests” – i.e. through the use of standard photography, observation, videos and so on, rather than teams being able to strike deals to have access to another competitor’s LTCs.
7. DAS Banned
This will only affect Mercedes, yet their 2020 Dual Axis Steering system will not be allowed this year.
So, as you guys can see, there are many new changes coming this year which we need to look out for and see if they impact the outcome of the World Championship. LEt’s hope these rule changes make for an exciting season ahead of the major 2022 regulation changes!
Thanks for reading guys!
Chat soon,
Sach & Soph x