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The FIA has implemented significant adjustments to Formula 1’s sporting regulations for the 2025 season, with two critical changes focusing on formation laps and the handling of damaged cars being especially noteworthy.
As per the amended Article 43.8 of F1’s sporting rules, all cars that begin their race from the pit lane must now leave the pit lane and join the formation lap. Previously, such cars would remain in their garages until the grid was fully formed, effectively missing the formation lap altogether.
Under the new regulations, once the formation lap is completed—including cars that started from the pit lane—these vehicles will re-enter the pits and line up based on their qualifying positions. However, if they only form up after the five-minute pre-race signal, they will be required to join at the back of the queue for the formation lap.
Industry sources indicate that these rule changes aim to eliminate several loopholes that had been available under the previous regulations. For instance, prior wording allowed pit lane starters to participate in additional formation laps or laps behind the safety car in extreme weather, potentially giving them an unfair advantage over others who opted not to join during these extra laps.
In situations where a race start had to be aborted, pit lane starters could also unwittingly gain an extra lap of fuel even if the race distance was reduced. Furthermore, if a race commenced under a safety car in wet conditions, those starting from the pit lane could choose to wait for better conditions and switch to intermediate tires, while other competitors on the track would have to pit for tire changes immediately following the first lap.
To address these scenarios, the FIA has enforced a rule that requires all cars starting from the pit lane to complete all formation laps prior to returning to the pits under any and all starting circumstances.
Changes Regarding Damaged Cars
The FIA has also addressed another pivotal loophole concerning damaged vehicles attempting to return to the pits post-incident. While FIA representatives assert that these changes were not prompted by any specific incident in 2024, a relevant case from the previous year involved Sergio Perez, a former Red Bull driver, during the Canadian Grand Prix. After crashing his car, he returned to the pits with significant damage, creating debris on the track.
This incident led to Perez receiving a three-place grid penalty for the subsequent Spanish Grand Prix, with Red Bull incurring a €25,000 fine for their role in facilitating this action. The stewards’ decision was influenced by a desire to avoid triggering a safety car that could negatively impact Max Verstappen, who was still in contention for the race win in another Red Bull car.
In response, amendments to Article 26.10 now grant the F1 race director, Rui Marques, the authority to instruct teams to halt their damaged cars immediately. It remains uncertain whether Marques will communicate this directly to drivers or relay the instructions through race engineers.
The revised rule states that any driver whose car exhibits significant damage that poses a risk to their safety or that of others must exit the track as soon as it is safe. The race director also holds the discretion to enforce this directive if a car displays substantial structural damage or operational failure that could impede competition.
Essentially, these adjustments streamline the existing rule concerning cars flagged for repairs, which had previously been a topic of considerable debate since the 2022 season. The FIA recognized that interpretations of earlier language in this rule were ambiguous, creating challenges for both teams and race stewards in enforcement.
Source
www.autosport.com