Martin Brundle believes Formula 1 should consider limiting telemetry after a radio message from Sergio Perez during the Spanish Grand Prix.
Nowadays, almost every part of an F1 car is observable to engineers out on track thanks to sensors constantly transmitting data back to the garage.
With that information available in real-time, it has seen a switch from the driver managing the car and reporting issues back to the pitwall, to the pitwall now informing the driver of problems and advising on how to change the settings on the steering wheel.
But there was one particular request the Racing Point driver made in Sunday’s race which has the former driver turned Sky Sports pundit questioning if it broke the regulations.
“A low point of the race for me was when we heard Perez over the radio asking his team how his tyres were,” Brundle wrote in his post-race column.
Also Read:
- Hamilton wants multi-stop F1 races, but without the tyre management
- F1 set to make current cars slower for 2021 over tyre fears
“That feels very much the wrong way around to me and another endorsement for limiting car-to-pit telemetry only to items which are safety-critical for the driver (and therefore those trackside too) and the rotating hot oily bits.
Also: “As the regulations say, ‘the driver must drive alone and unaided’,” he added.
Interestingly though in the very same race, there were also examples where the driver was effectively doing the job of his engineers.
“In fact, on that subject, it was interesting to hear both [Lewis] Hamilton and [Max] Verstappen influencing their own race strategies,” Brundle noted.
“Hamilton declared a set of the usually happy-hour soft tyres as unsuitable for his Sunday afternoon drive, instead demanding the mediums.
“He was right, they were relatively rubbish when fitted to his teammate’s car.”
The case of Ferrari debating strategy with Sebastian Vettel was another example, with the German opting to back a suggestion to gamble on a one-stop instead of two.
But this topic of pit-to-driver communication is something F1 has had to grapple with for years, coming up with previous ideas like limiting what can be discussed on radio calls.
When it comes to telemetry, this has also gotten much more advanced. Particularly in regards to the tyres because management is such a key factor nowadays, so the sensors which monitor temperatures and pressures have become a key tool in optimising pace through a race.
The idea of removing some of the data available has been mentioned before too, but teams have always come up with a safety reason to justify their continued use.