From Max Verstappen’s Title Debacle to Pirelli’s Rain Problem, FIA Makes Major F1 Changes for 2023

A lot has happened over the winter break in Formula 1. 2022 was a year of massive change for the sport. The new technical regulations that overhauled the cars and their design had their first year, the contentious cost cap regulations saw one of F1’s biggest controversies to date come alive when Red Bull was caught red-handed, in breach of it, and the FIA president received a lot of flak the drivers, teams and fans alike. Another big talking point was the last-minute confusion surrounding Max Verstappen and his championship status post the Japanese Grand Prix. Safe to say, the governing body of the sport, the FIA, had a lot on its plates this time around. And they’ve come out with a plethora of changes.

Over the years, the fans and the teams have made many requests to the FIA. Now, it would appear that the higher-ups that dictate how the sport is to be run have taken cognizance of the burning issues. On the 21st of February, the F1 commission, consisting of the newly appointed FIA single-seater boss Nikolas Tombazis and F1’s CEO Stefano Domenicali amongst others, convened a meeting to finalize the changes to be implemented from the 2023 season onwards.

The first point on the agenda was to address the Japanese GP title confusion. Last year, at the rain-hit Japanese GP at Suzuka, there was some confusion regarding the points distribution à propos the race distance completed. However, according to the FIA, the rules have been amended to “ensure that shorter races have reduced points even if they don’t finish with a suspended race.”

Further, “Following successful testing by Pirelli, with the support of teams, Pirelli have arrived at a wet weather tire which is much more performant than the previous specification – this tire does not require the use of tire blankets.” This tire compound will debut from Imola onwards.

In addition to these, many other changes, such as more DRS activation zones, driver-team radio relaxations, etc. have been implemented.

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The FIA’s president had announced that he would be stepping away from the day-to-day running of F1. In line with this, change is afoot at the FIA.

Successor to Mohammed Ben Sulayem announced!

The FIA president, Ben Sulayem, had caught a lot of criticism for his involvement in the sport. But to appease the masses, he announced that he would be distancing himself from the sport. Now, a seemingly new appointment has been made that comes in line with his announcement.

The FIA’s newest single-seater boss, Nikolas Tombazis, said, “I am excited and honored to be taking on this new position within the FIA, and very grateful to the President for the trust he is demonstrating towards me.

“We have a group of extremely talented and dedicated people who work flat out to deliver the level of regulation that Formula 1 demands and deserves, and I fully believe this new structure will take our resources to the next level and allow us to make continual improvements.”

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Do you think the new rules in place will enhance the competition and spectacle of F1 in 2023?