FIA & F1 Teams Reach A Compromise Of Raising Floor Edge Height To 15mm!

The FIA brought some major changes in the aerodynamic regulations as the 2022 cars were based on ground-effect. However, the newly designed F1 cars suffered some level of porpoising, with some teams, including Mercedes facing plenty of troubles. As the teams struggled to control the effects of porpoising, several concerns were raised about the drivers\’ safety following hours of exposure to violent bouncing. However, most of the teams faced bouncing issues in Baku, and further complaints led to the FIA intervening in the matter.

The sport\’s governing body decided to introduce some regulations changes for the current season, which will come into action during the Belgian GP. Meanwhile, the FIA also proposed the idea of increasing the floor edge\’s height of the 2023 cars to 25mm in order to eliminate the porpoising. However, almost half of the teams were not in favor of increasing the height to 25 mm. The changes in aerodynamics would have led to some serious financial setbacks. On Wednesday, the F1 team representatives met during the Technical Advisory Committee meeting with the FIA to discuss the issue at hand. The teams finally came to a compromise. The ride height would be raised to 15mm instead of the proposed 25mm for the next season. 

Toto Wolff was at the forefront of the regulations change and had been quite vocal about the safety of drivers. He had pointed out earlier about the medical reports on porpoising. The Mercedes team principal insisted that a frequency of 1-2Hz, sustained by drivers over a few minutes, could lead to brain damage. And the drivers are currently exposed to 6-7Hz for several hours. Wolff added, \”So the answer is very easy, the FIA needs to do something about it.\”

Christian Horner Shares His Views About The Regulation Change

Red Bull has dominated in the newly designed ground-effect F1 cars this season. They are currently leading both the championships and have not suffered any major porpoising so far. Thus, the Red Bull boss Christian Horner was not in favor of a regulation change so late in the season. The former Austrian driver suggested that teams have already started to work on the 2023 car. Hence, making a big change in the regulation should only lead to financial troubles. Horner suggested earlier that a compromise was needed to be made in terms of regulation changes.

Talking after the meeting, Christian suggested that raising the height to 15mm was not as good as leaving the issue alone. However, he was relieved that it was not as bad as 25mm. Horner said the change was a compromise the teams would have to incorporate next season. The Briton concluded, \”That\’s what we\’ve been good at over the years. And we\’ll just have to do that with this challenge.