Four Reasons Why 2023 F1 Season Is Going to Be Different

Just like any other Formula 1 season, 2023 will have a host of changes as well. The season will have a record-breaking 23 races, and if F1 can find a replacement for the canceled Chinese GP, we will have 24 races. The United States will host 3 of those fixtures, with Las Vegas joining the calendar for the first time. There will also be 4 technical changes that the teams will have to adapt to.

Before the season opener in Bahrain, there will be only one pre-season test, also to take place in Bahrain. Will the new changes help slow down the Red Bull-Max Verstappen juggernaut?

Double the number of sprint races in 2023

F1 introduced the concept of Sprint Qualifying in 2021. Then, the Sprint Qualifying took place in only three race weekends- Britain, Italy, and Brazil. The top 3 finishers of each sprint qualifying were awarded 3, 2, and 1 world championship points.

In 2022, F1 continued to hold Sprint Qualifying in three fixtures- the Emilia Romagna GP, the Austrian GP, and the Sao Paulo GP. This time, they awarded the top 8 finishers world championship points, with the driver finishing P1 getting 8 points and the driver finishing P8 getting 1 point.

F1 is going to double the number of Sprint races in 2023. While Brazil and Austria will continue to host the session, 4 new venues will get the opportunity to be part of the action. The new venues ready to host Sprint are Azerbaijan, Belgium, Qatar, and the US.

New technical changes introduced by F1

After the FIA introduced a host of new regulations for cars, most teams struggled with the bouncing issue. Among them were Mercedes as their star driver Lewis Hamilton was the worst affected by it.

Keeping drivers’ safety and health as a priority, FIA in its 2023 regulations, has asked the teams to raise the ride height by 15 mm. The diffusers’ heights will also be raised to tackle the issue.

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Another technical change will be the fitting of a new sensor which will measure the vertical forces acting on the car. The minimum weight of cars will be 796 kgs (1755 lbs) now, reduced from 798 kgs (1759 lbs) earlier.

Keeping in mind Zhou Guanyu’s horrific crash in Silverstone, Roll Hoops will be strengthened further.

Changes in tire regulations for qualifying

2 fixtures will run an experimental tire regulation in qualifying. In the Q1 session, drivers will only use hard compound tires, the medium compound in Q2, and soft compound in Q3.

Crash reported Pirelli boss Mario Isola as saying, “If you allocate two sets of Hards for Q1, two sets of Mediums for Q2, and two sets of Softs for Q3, you still have six sets for the race. That’s perfect. We save a lot of tires with that, without disrupting the F1 show.”

F1 Grid penalties simplified

Drivers sometimes take grid penalties for a host of reasons which become confusing. That is now going to change as according to Crash, “Drivers who receive “more than 15 cumulative grid position penalties, or who have been penalized to start at the back of the grid, will start behind any other classified driver.”

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What do you think of the latest F1 changes? Will they add excitement to a season that has got fans hyped before it even starts?