More young drivers in Formula 1: how will the FIA manage that?
F1 News
- GPblog.com
With Charles Leclerc, Max Verstappen and Yuki Tsunoda among others, Formula 1 has several young drivers, but at the same time several drivers are waiting for a chance at the highest level. That is why there are calls to give talented drivers more opportunities to gain experience, although the question is how this should be done.
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff made a clear statement this summer about how he envisaged it. The Austrian suggested to keep three cars per team on the track from now on, which would free up more places for young drivers. The plan immediately met with a lot of resistance from the smaller teams who could not afford it. But what is an option?
Mandate training time for talented drivers
Under the new rules, from 2022 onwards, teams will have to use a talent during free practice for at least two race weekends. It should help them get used to a Formula 1 car and thus have an edge over talents who didn't experience that. Others, however, want to go further and suggest that it should be compulsory to deploy young talents every Friday during the first two free practice sessions. It would not only mean that they could gain more experience, but the situation would also make it more difficult for the teams to prepare for Sunday's race.
Formula 1 team for young drivers
The ambitious plan to set up a special team in Formula 1 where talents get the opportunity to develop themselves has also been mentioned before. This would be an eleventh team that would participate in all Grands Prix in cooperation with the participating race teams. The other teams could then use this group of drivers when they are looking for a replacement.
Difficult task for Formula 1
It will be a difficult task for Formula 1 in the coming years to meet all the wishes. The new rules for talented drivers is a step in the right direction. The next few years will show what other changes the FIA has in store.