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At times, driving a Formula One car can be made to look easy. The Mercedes team have done an exemplary job of that in 2014.
There appear to be more drivers thinking they can be part of this top field of 22 cars, with competition for drives ever increasing. In the last two seasons of races and practice sessions, 43 different drivers have participated at Grand Prix weekends.
However, the FIA have decided that the time has come to tighten up the regulations that determine who may get behind the wheel of a Formula One car.
At the World Motor Sport Council’s meeting earlier this week, the FIA established a number of changes to the requirements of obtaining a Super Licence, which will come into effect for the 2016 season.
The new conditions of receiving a Super Licence now require, among other things, drivers to be over 18 years of age, a minimum of two years running in minor Formula development championships, success at these levels, a valid driving license requirement and in-depth knowledge of the Formula One sporting regulations.
The 2016 changes have been broken into three categories – safety, experience and performance criteria – emphasising the three most important qualities the FIA needs to see reflected in Formula One drivers. Before they get into the cockpit, these drivers have to show that they have the skills to participate competently in the highest level of world motorsport.
But what has suddenly changed in the world of Formula One that the FIA suddenly feel their admission process into the top flight is now not thorough enough?
Jules Bianchi’s Suzuka accident has doubtlessly left long-term impacts on the sport, and served as an unfortunate reminder of the dangerous nature of the sport. As the governing body, the FIA has a responsibility to the drivers to ensure they are as well prepared as they can possibly be, before strapping themselves to the chassis.
Since the mid-1990s, when driver safety took on new levels of importance, Formula One has been constantly viewing and reviewing its safety measures. New barrier protection, car crash checks and safety belt procedures are just a few examples of how driver’s lives have become the first priority for the sport.
The introduction of an age restriction, non-racing licence requirements and an assessment of driver knowledge are merely 2015’s equivalent of such procedures.
If the FIA is of the view that drivers need to spend a little longer in the lower tiers before they jump up to the top of the sport, so be it. Similar to driving a road car, there is no substitute for experience.
However, Bianchi’s incident was a tragic accident, with numerous variables contributing to the subsequent severe outcome. The real reason for the FIA’s new licensing actions brought about far less headlines when his news unfolded.
In Australia next March, Dutchman Max Verstappen will race for Toro Rosso, making him the youngest participant in a Formula One Grand Prix race at 17 years and 166 days.
This is the reason the FIA has introduced these new conditions of licensing. After the influx of young drivers into the sport over the last few years, the governing body has decided enough is enough, and it’s time to start limiting the field of drivers who can participate at the top level.
By placing the age, knowledge, experience and performance restrictions on potential racers, the FIA can make sure that only the best prepared and most developed and talented drivers are the ones racing the fastest open-wheel cars in the world.
Putting an inexperienced young driver in these cars could, potentially, have devastating consequences.
Too many drivers in Formula One prevents the field from being considered the ultimate pool of driving talent, with the comings and goings of less well known teenagers creating a bottleneck at the entry gates to the championship and complicating the challenging for spots.
However, putting the quality of the sport aside, the fact the FIA is willing to introduce new measures in an effort to make the sport safer is a testament to the governing body’s managerial strategies, and forward thinking.
The incidence of new drivers makes getting a Super Licence and driving in Formula One look easy. But hopefully the young blood of the field in 2015 will back the FIA’s changes, and publicly state after their first race that it isn’t.
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