FIA helps Pirelli with lower downforce level in Formula 1

The FIA is making plans to lower the downforce level of F1 cars. The overseeing body wants to do this in order to assist Pirelli who will supply the same tyres for the third year in a row. Safety first is the motto.

Motorsport.com reports that the FIA, in direct response to the punctures of Carlos Sainz, Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas during the first British GP at Silverstone, will deliberately keep the downforce levels for next year low.

In practical terms, this means that in 2021 the teams will be able to change their cars even less than they thought. The aero-package, which the teams thought they could at least improve, will probably be locked up even more.

This year the teams will ride on the tyres of 2019 because the tyres that Pirelli had proposed for 2020 were rejected by the teams. There will be no new tyres for next year because it is not profitable to continue developing them for one year.

As of 2022, the F1 cars will have 18-inch wheels. This too has been postponed for a year. In the meantime, the old tyres will have to remain safe and a good match with the downforce that an F1 car generates. The FIA is allowed to make this change according to article 2.2 of the regulations. It concerns the safety of the drivers.