🚨| The new engines are destroying drivers' talent:
— Energy management software in the new Formula 1 power units is significantly impacting drivers' ability to push their limits. Drivers are now forced to lift and coast before braking, prioritizing battery power for straights over daring maneuvers in corners. Speaking to media, Charles Leclerc explained:
“I feel that one of my strengths in the past was that in Q3 I was taking enormous risks to earn something more. Now, when you do it, you confuse the engine and you start to lose more than you earn. Consistency pays more.”
“The system learns from previous laps, a dynamic similar to that of Formula E.”
— Lando Norris highlighted that current Formula 1 prioritizes energy management over traditional driving skills. Speaking to media, Norris remarked:
“The driver no longer drives the car, but the power unit. Talent is not measured in attacking curves, but in managing energy and in being constant in driving.”
— Andrea Kimi Antonelli shared his experience from his first weekend in Australia, emphasizing the importance of consistent and precise inputs to avoid confusing the system. He reflected:
“In Melbourne, in qualifying, compared to George, I made a mistake in the way I went on the gas in a curve and this caused the system to go a bit confused and that I lost in the following straights.”
— Antonelli further elaborated on the need to balance instinct with reason to optimize energy use:
“George can find the right balance with managing the battery a little earlier, while I'm still acting too impulsively. I like to act instinctively, but sometimes, especially with these power units, a lot of times you can't do just that, you need your reason.”
— The evolution of power units and software is expected, potentially making driving less counterintuitive. However, if traditional pole position dynamics are to return, the Federation may need to intervene by placing constraints on management software and rethinking energy availability in qualifying.
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VIA: [formulapassion