The FIA has closed loopholes in F1 pit-lane start procedures and damaged cars handling by introducing updates to Formula 1 sporting regulations ahead of the 2025 season.
The changes which are now detailed in Articles 43.8 and 26.10 of the FIA’s sporting code, aim to improve safety, fairness, and clarity while addressing loopholes that teams have previously exploited.
F1 pit-lane start procedures now include joining formation lap
One of the most notable changes involves the F1 pit-lane start procedures. According to Autosport, Article 43.8 has been revised and all cars starting from the pitlane are now required to participate in the formation lap alongside cars on the grid.
Previously, teams could delay their pitlane-starting cars in the garage until after the formation lap had concluded, allowing them to potentially gain strategic advantages in certain conditions, such as wet weather or aborted starts.
Now, these cars must leave the pitlane as soon as it is opened during the formation lap and join the procession on track. After completing this lap, they will return to the pits and line up at the end of the pit-lane in their qualifying order.
This rule eliminates several tactical benefits that teams previously leveraged. For instance, under the old F1 pit-lane start procedures cars could adjust fuel loads or tire strategies based on evolving conditions during aborted starts or safety car periods before joining the race.
By mandating participation in the formation lap all cars now face uniform conditions at the start of a Grand Prix, ensuring a level playing field.
Damaged cars stop immediately
The second major update to Formula 1 sporting regulations focuses on how damaged cars are handled during races. Article 26.10 has been revised to grant Race Director Rui Marques greater authority to order a team to stop a car immediately if it is deemed too damaged to continue safely.
This change addresses incidents where drivers have attempted to limp back to the pits with significant structural damage or critical failures that pose risks to other competitors or affect race dynamics.
Historically, such situations were managed using the black-and-orange flag—commonly referred to as the “meatball flag”—which signals a driver to return to the pits for repairs.
However, this process often involved delays and disputes over whether a car was sufficiently damaged to warrant intervention. The new regulation bypasses this ambiguity by empowering race officials to act decisively when a car’s condition presents an immediate danger or impedes competition.
The revision was partly inspired by high-profile incidents from recent seasons, including Sergio Perez’s crash during the rain-soaked 2024 Canadian Grand Prix.
In that race, Perez attempted to drive his heavily damaged car back to the pits, leaving debris on the track and raising concerns about safety and fairness. Although he received a grid penalty for his actions, the incident highlighted gaps in existing rules that allowed such scenarios to occur.
Under the updated Article 26.10, any car with “significant and obvious damage” or a “critical defect” must leave the track as soon as it is safe to do so.
This directive applies even if returning to the pits would not trigger a safety car or disrupt other competitors’ races. The decision rests solely with race officials, removing any room for teams to contest or delay compliance.
Impact on race strategy
While closing loopholes in both F1 pit-lane start procedures and damaged car protocols minimizes risks and ensures fairer competition across all teams, the impact of these revisions influences race strategies significantly.
Teams can no longer exploit delays in pitlane starts or rely on ambiguous damage assessments to gain tactical advantages during Grands Prix. Instead, they must adapt their approaches within stricter parameters set by these new rules.
For example, mandatory participation in formation laps for pitlane starters could affect tire management strategies during wet races or situations involving multiple aborted starts.
Similarly, stricter enforcement of damaged car regulations may lead teams to adopt more conservative approaches when assessing whether a car can safely continue after an incident.
With just days remaining until lights out at Albert Park for the 2025 F1 season opener, all eyes will be on how the new Formula 1 sporting regulations changes play out in practice.
