On the eve of this weekend’s Qatar Grand Prix, the second round of the 2024 FIA Formula One World Championship season, a meeting hosted by the FIA Formula 1 Stewards provided a forum for constructive dialogue on the future development of the world’s leading driving instructions and management. racing series
Garry Connelly, Chairman of the FIA Stewards of Formula 1, hosted the meeting which, in addition to the FIA Stewards team, brought together Formula 1 drivers and team representatives as well as representatives of the FIA’s race control, including race director Rui Marques.
The purpose of the meeting was to promote wheel-to-wheel racing in a safe and controlled manner by further defining the rights and responsibilities of overtaking and being overtaken drivers and improve consistency among Stewards. decision.
“This was the most productive meeting we have ever had. [ever] “I attended.” Connelly admitted. “The feedback from drivers has been fantastic. Very constructive. There wasn’t a single negative comment. Didn’t even point a finger. It was very encouraging to see the world’s best drivers communicating clearly and speaking constructively about how we can improve driving standards guidelines for the benefit of drivers and make all their jobs easier..
“As Stewards, we are not here to cause suffering to drivers. We are here to provide a level playing field. It’s not us dealing with the driver, it’s the driver dealing with the driver. We’re here to make sure it’s fair for everyone.
“We have an open door policy. The doors to the Stewards’ room are always open to any driver who wants to talk to us about decisions made in relation to themselves or another driver. We believe that the open-door policy was emphasized at Thursday’s meeting..
“The Driving Standards Guidelines are a living document, so every year as F1 Stewards we meet with drivers, sporting directors and FIA representatives to try to see if the Guidelines need to be revised to take advantage of the experience of the past 12 months. Find out what improvements you can make to ensure consistency. The goal of the guidelines is consistency.”
“As stewards, if we agree that drivers, teams and the FIA want rules or guidelines to allow for more aggressive driving, we will enforce those rules or guidelines. Likewise, if they want stricter driving standards, we will apply them.” He concluded.
Tim Malyon, the FIA’s director of single-seater sport, was very much in line with Connelly’s perception of the meeting.
“We will always strive to facilitate such meetings, as getting feedback and insight from drivers is critical to evolving our guidance in the right direction.” Malyon summarized the conference, which analyzed several case studies, particularly overtaking cases from this year’s United States Grand Prix.
“We have had very constructive driver meetings over the last few races. This meeting was designed to provide a space to continue the conversation and allow for the open interaction we needed with our drivers. “We will be able to develop guidelines next year,” he said. Marlion said..
“We usually hold such meetings at least once a year, sometimes twice a year, depending on the topics that arise. “This year, we set the time for this meeting after constructive discussions in Mexico and Austin.”
The former FIA safety chief also explained the role played by the circuit itself, particularly the breakaway zone, in relation to the driver’s approach to wheel-to-wheel maneuvers.
“As the FIA we are constantly working with the circuits to evolve in a variety of ways. Obviously we are working on the safety aspects of the circuit. But what is it? “The meeting highlighted is that from a sporting perspective there are a number of considerations that we may want to prioritize on the circuit going forward.” he explained.
“As we did this year, we have introduced gravel traps starting in Austria and this will definitely be the weekend we have added gravel traps to multiple locations. We are continuing to work on the circuit on all topics, but yesterday’s meeting was very useful to get insight from drivers and see how they are prioritizing gravel track concepts to manage some of the situations as well as track restrictions. Overtaking has occurred over the course of the last 4-5 races. Overall, there was a commitment to work together to find a solution that worked for everyone.” Marlion concluded.
Changes to the spill area introduced this year include approximately 2.5m wide gravel traps added to turns 9 and 10 of the Red Bull Ring, as well as a number of news changes around the Lusail International Circuit, which hosts this weekend’s GP.
FIA high-performance programs essential to the development of racing officials
Connelly also spoke about the importance of the FIA High Performance Program, which provides tailored training and mentoring to the sport’s best stewards and race directors to prepare them for roles at FIA World Championship level events.
“HPP is an initiative of President Mohammed Ben Sulayem. One of them is with us today. This is Caroline Tuta Mionki, a woman from Kenya. Our HPP program is designed to fast-track talented young people through the system, train them and allow them to enter the FIA Championship as stewards as soon as they qualify.” he explained.
The FIA HPP has 23 participants representing 16 FIA member clubs from 6 regions. Additionally, the FIA’s Regional Steward Training Program attracted 195 unique participants, with an average age of 37.5 years and a female participation rate of 42%.
