Posted on 17th September 2014
Yesterday, Formula One's governing body the FIA have issued another Technical Directive to the teams to clarify what will and will not be permitted as they clampdown on team radio transmissions from this weekend's Singapore Grand Prix.
Last week, FIA Race Director Charlie Whiting wrote to all 11 teams stating that 'radio communications relating to the performance of the driver and the car would be banned with immediate effect.
Whiting has since given further clarification to the teams as to what will be banned heading forward, including some rules that will be only introduced from the Japanese GP onwards.
Coded messages will be banned and the wording – “any message that appears to be coded” – should make it easier for the stewards to penalise anyone they suspect to be circumventing the rules. The clampdown on performance related messages over the radio will also apply to pitboards and pit-to-car telemetry that can tweak settings remotely is also banned.
Messages that will still be allowed to be communicated on team radio are as follows
Acknowledgement that a driver message has been heard.
A competitor's lap time.
Their own lap and sector time.
Gaps to a competitor during a practice session or race.
Information about a competitor’s likely race strategy.
Tyre choice at next pitstop.
Front-wing adjustment at their next pitstop.
The number of laps a competitor has done on a set of tyres during a race.
A competitor's tyre compound.
Being told to increase their pace (E.g. “Push hard†or “push nowâ€).
Who they are likely to be racing (E.g. “You will be racing XXâ€).
Warning of a puncture.
Information on yellow and blue flags.
Safety Car deployment.
Problems with a competitor's car.
Team orders.
Laps remaining.
Help with finding a gap in qualifying.
DRS enabled and disabled notifications.
Infractions by team, driver or competitor (E.g. running off track, missing a chicane, time penalty).
Track information (E.g. Wet track, oil or debris at certain corners).
Damage to the car.
Reminders to check for white lines leaving and entering pits and weighbridge lights.
Weather information.
Test information (Eg. Set speed runs for aero-mapping).
When to pit.
Messages that are banned to be communicated on team radio is as follows
Sector time detail of a competitor and where they are faster or slower.
Adjustment of powerunit settings.
Answering a driver's direction question (E.g. “Am I using the right torque map?”).
Level of fuel saving needed.
Any message that appears to be coded.
Information on tyre temperatures and pressures (from Japan onwards).
Balancing the SOC (state of battery charge) or adjusting it for performance.
Number of burn-outs required prior the race.
Warning of brake-wear or temperatures (from Japan onwards).
Learning of gears from gearbox (from Japan onwards).
Start maps related to clutch position, for race start and pit stops.
Information on clutch maps or settings (E.g. bite point).
Brake balance and brake-by-wire information.
Adjustment of gearbox settings.
Information on fuel flow settings (unless requested to do so by Race Control).
Adjustment of powerunit settings to de-rate system.
Selection of driver default settings (unless there is a clearly identified problem with the car).
Information on differential settings.
From last week's announcement made by Mercedes boss Toto Wolff describing the changes as “controversial†stating that “there will be inevitably be some controversy.', alongside McLaren Racing Director Eric Boullier adding that the new Technical Directives will further complicate what is already a difficult grand prix for the teams in Singapore.
In a statement to the media, Whiting stated the following regarding the clarifications that have been announced today
'We are still evaluating the full consequences of the new interpretation of Article 20.1 of the FIA Sporting Regulations, but, as a team, we will of course find a solution that works and which follows this new interpretation Singapore is a difficult race to manage under normal circumstances, so this will definitely add an extra dimension to our preparations.
Even though the FIA have clarified what can and cannot be communicated during team radio transmissions, I do feel that they will need to ensure that these new rules are implemented fully and find viable solutions. This weekend at Singapore will be the first Grand Prix under these new regulations and I feel that it will take a lot of getting used to what can and cannot be said under team radio now.
But I do feel that it will take the FIA some time to further clarify and state their position on the new regulation changes regarding team radio transmissions. But they have made a start on this and they will after this weekend see if the changes have worked and will concentrate on strengthening the rules and their position on them too.
But now that the FIA have made a start on what can be communicated and what cannot be communicated during team radio transmissions, we can only wait and see what happens over the next few races and see if these changes have brought about what the FIA wanted to achieve on the matter, with all eyes upon them in the process.
