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Australia may provide a small window of opportunity for Formula One minnows to potentially mug the more fancied teams as drivers get on terms with new regulations and practices for 2016.
A major factor to watch this season will be the lack of radio contact between teams and drivers. Even at the pointy-end of the grid, driver’s reactions to radio instructions tend to polarise and was one of the key stumbling blocks that ended Valentino Rossi’s single seater career before it even got off the ground.
While we may miss the blunt humour of Kimi Raikkonen, it could prove to be a game-changer in the championship, with Lewis Hamilton prone to second guess his crew while teammate Nico Rosberg appears to thrive on information.
Fernando Alonso on the other hand is a one-man pit-wall and probably the most equipped pilot to deal with the new regulation. Regardless, how each pilot responds radio silence will be fascinating and potentially provide more opportunity for smarter drivers to make inspired decisions.
Sergio Perez is one man who is circumspect about the new ruling, given all of his podiums have come about through strategic decisions. But what will he miss the most about being cut off from ground control?
“Probably fuel-saving. In the past you used to get feedback from the team what was going on. Probably the new regulations can provide some opportunity for a team like us that don’t have the outright pace of some of the teams.”
Single-hand and one clutch starts are another curveball that could shake up the grid in the first 200 metres, but once again, Melbourne will be used as a guinea pig to engineers to optimise the best placement going into a start. That said, changing grip conditions can still override the best laid plans as even something as simple as the sun peeking out from behind the clouds can dramatically affect a start – as drag racing engineers will attest.
“We’ve been practicing with it (the clutch)” says Perez.
“You can get it wrong if you drop the clutch to the wrong position or if you don’t do the right procedure. It can be a bit of an adventure for the drivers so that it (the clutch) doesn’t get away from you, but I think after the first race everything will be back to normal. We have very clever engineers here. If you get the clutch position right then you will have an advantage rather than modulating the clutch.”
One area that Perez and some of the other drivers weren’t in favour of is of course the new qualifying format, which most pundits agree didn’t need changing. Under the new rules, the slowest drivers will be eliminated every 90 seconds from seven minutes into qualifying onwards. On paper, the new system could claim a big scalp all as 22 cars attempt to slot in a banker lap, but could also create chaos at tighter tracks like Monaco or Hungary.
Does Perez feel drivers weren’t adequately consulted before the new format was implemented?
“We gave our point of view and now we just have to get on with it” admits a pragmatic Perez.
“I do find it a little strange that they asked for our point of view when the decision had already been taken.”
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