A Brief Guide To A Race Weekend
General
Each car is powered by a 2.4-litre 90-degree V8 engine which
develops up to 800 bhp at 19000 rpm. An assortment of wings and
spoilers, which are restricted in size and rigidity, create
downforce at speed. This pushes the car down and improves the grip
provided by the tyres and suspension. As a result, the lateral
forces exerted on the driver during cornering and braking can reach
5.0Gs, or 5 times the force of gravity.
All 22 cars are supplied with a limited quantity Bridgestone
tyres. Dry weather tyres come with 4 vertical grooves and in hard
and soft componds. The latter is distinguished by a single painted
white groove. Wet weather tyres come in 2 kinds: intermediate and
wet, the latter having more and deeper cuts and softer rubber to
cope with very wet weather.
Free
Practice
3 free practice sessions are run over the race weekend: 1
90-minute session on Friday morning (late Friday afternoon for
Singapore), 1 90-minute session on Friday afternoon (Friday night),
and one 60-minute session on Saturday morning (late Saturday
afternoon). Teams may use as many engines as they wish on Friday,
but by Saturday, the engine subject to the 2-race cycle must be
installed and used for the rest of the weekend.
Only 2 drivers may participate in either Friday session, but a
team may rest one driver and use a tester for one or both
practices.
Qualifying
Qualifying lasts one hour, and takes place on Saturday afternoon
(night). It is split into 3 sessions. In Q1, all the drivers
attempt to set as fast a lap time as possible, with no restrictions
on fuel, in 20 minutes. Any lap that is started within the said 20
minutes may be counted. The 6 slowest drivers are eliminated, and
make up the last 6 positions on the grid.
The process is repeated for Q2, which lasts 15 minutes instead.
The next 6 positions on the grid are taken by the 6 slowest drivers
from this session. The slowest 12 cars will be allowed to refuel
before the start of the race.
The final 10 drivers will fight for pole position, or the very
first and most advantageous spot on the grid, in Q3, which lasts 10
minutes. However, they will start the session with enouugh fuel for
both qualifying and the first stint of the race, and will not be
allowed to refuel. At the end of the session, their times will
decide the top 10 grid positions, and all 22 cars will be impounded
in parc ferme.
Any grid penalties as a result of engine or gearbox changes or
infringements in the previous race will then be accounted for in
chronological order, before the final starting grid is
released.
Pre-race
All the cars must leave the garages when the pitlane opens
between 30 and 15 minutes before the start of the race, otherwise
they will start the race from the pitlane.
10 minutes before the race (indicated by 4 lights), all
non-essential personnel must leave the grid. At 5 minutes (3
lights), the cars must be refueled and have their tyres attached.
Between the 1-minute and 15-second marks, with the drivers already
strapped in, engines must be started, and all team personnel and
equipment must be cleared.
The drivers will then proceed for one warm-up lap. Any car that
stalls and does not get going before the rest of the grid will
start from the back. During the warm-up lap, the drivers weave and
brake their cars to warm up their tyres and brakes, before retaking
their starting positions.
When the drivers have taken their positions, 5 red lights
suspended over the start line will illuminate in sequence before
going out simultaneously to start the race. If the start has to be
aborted, the drivers will procede for another warm-up lap, and one
race lap will be deducted.
Race
During the race, each car may return to the pitlane to as many
pitstops as necessary. All cars must be driven at the predetermined
speed limit throughout the weekend. Tyres and fuel are routinely
changed and added respectively, and sometimes radiators may be
cleared and wings adjusted or changed. However, all cars must use
at least 2 different types of tyre during the race, i.e. a
combination of either hard/soft compound dry tyres or wet/dry
tyres.
When a yellow flag is waved at a certain spot, usually as a
result of an accident or debris, all drivers must slow down and no
overtaking may take place until the flag is passed or removed. When
the blue flag is waved to driver, he must move over and allow the
car behind to lap him before a third straight blue flag is shown. A
red flag means that the session or race has been stopped, and all
drivers will returned to the pitlane. When a driver is
black-flagged, he is disqualified on the spot and must report to
the race stewards immediately.
When there is a serious accident which poses a danger to the
other drivers, or the weather conditions are deemed too dangerous,
the safety car is deployed onto the track. All the drivers must
drive behind it in formation, no overtaking is allowed, and the
pitlane is closed. Once all the cars form up, lapped drivers are
given the signal to unlap themselves and rejoin at the back of the
queue, and the pitlane is reopened, allowing the drivers to make
pitstops. The race may start or end under the safety car if it is
deemed necessary.
The race ends when the driver in the lead completes the race
distance or when the 2-hour mark is reached, whichever comes first.
Any driver who stops before completing 90% of the winner's distance
is classified as retired and does not earn any points.
Penalties and
restrictions
Each car's engine must last a 2-weekend cycle. Any unscheduled
change after the first one will result in a penalty of 10 grid
places. The new restrictions on gearboxes are listed above.
However, if either component fails during a race, no additional
penalty is imposed at the next round. At the end of qualifying and
the race, each car must weigh at least 605kg, inclusive of driver,
fuel and lubricants.
Standard penalties take place in the form of
fines,
dropping of grid positions,
pitlane drive-throughs during the race,
the addition of time to one's race time, or
disqualification from the event.
Infringements include
pitlane speeding,
rash driving,
unscheduled changing of restricted components
jumping the start of the race,
disobedience of flag signals, and
the use of illegal components or fuel.
The race stewards decide on the penalty to be given, which may
not be implemented until the next race if it is decided after the
end of the event.
