More details about ban of qualification mode; overtake button remains allowed

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21 August 2020 at 08:39
Last update 21 August 2020 at 11:21
  • GPblog.com

The banning of qualifying mode has been postponed by a week to the Italian Grand Prix, but the first details about the new FIA technical directive have come out. Auto, Motor und Sport knows among other things that the use of the overtaking button remains permitted.

From the weekend at Monza, the qualification and race must be done with the same engine setting. The FIA decided to do this for safety reasons and because it had become very difficult for the technical commissioners with the advanced modes to check whether a power unit is legal or not.

Overtake button remains

According to the aforementioned source, drivers in Formula 1 may continue to use the so-called overtaking button. "The parameters for discharging and feeding the electric power may be further modified," can be read on the German website.

Driving with the same engine setting from Saturday afternoon sounds simple, but in some situations, it simply isn't desirable. That is why there are a few exceptions.

- The laps to the grid
- Laps behind the Safety Car or at VSC speed (virtual SafetyCar)
- The lap of honor after the chequered flag
- Rounds before and after a flying qualification round
- Any other round that is 20 percent above the fastest round of the qualifying session

From third power unit one mode per manufacturer

AMS added: "Because the engines already in use differ in their damage matrix and running time, the engine manufacturers are allowed to select different settings for these units from driver to driver depending on the condition of the combustion engine. Starting with the third engine in the system, all engines from one manufacturer must run in the same modes."