The deadline to agree Formula 1’s new regulations for 2021 has been pushed back until October, it is confirmed.
By the current rules, an agreement had to be reached by the end of this month to shape the future of the sport but after meetings with teams, the FIA, Pirelli and several drivers in Canada, that will no longer be the case.
In a press release sent late on Thursday, Liberty Media were keen to stress that what they considered the “core objectives outlined for the future set of regulations have been defined”.
However: “In the interests of the sport it was agreed that the best outcome will be achieved by using the extra time for further refinement and additional consultation.”
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Talks have taken place ever since the current American owners took over in 2016 with the main goal of addressing the areas which have created the two-tier performance level of recent years.
As a result, a budget cap of $175m is expected to be one of the most significant changes, as well as changes to the distribution of revenue to reduce the inequality between the teams.
All new cars are being developed with the aim of promoting closer racing with the introduction of some standard parts one of the current hot-button topics.
Smaller teams have been hesitant to delay the deadline for too long, as they need to prepare budgets and plan for the development of the new 2021 cars.
And one of the terms that got them on-side to this three-month delay is a guarantee that any alterations to the regulations as they stand now will be minor and not interrupt their early development phase.
Given the amount of work it has needed for F1 just to reach this stage, it will be interesting to see how talks progress as the details are hammered out in this final phase.
