Photo: Audi AG
The World Motor Sport Council has convened at London's Royal Automobile Club for its third meeting this year. While it appeared to be a regular meeting, it brought a few surprises. While the discussion took all forms of motorsport into account, F1 received the most attention.
We will get to the surprise in a moment, but first, let us review the main decisions that were made and that will affect the world of motorsport next year and in the years to come. Since this Summer, the FIA has approved the new Power Unit Regulations for 2026 in Formula One, and this decision has led to new companies that are interested in joining the sport.
Back in August, Audi announced that it is joining the FIA Formula One World Championship as a power unit manufacturer, and this has made all the people who developed the new PU (power unit) regulations happy about attracting new teams into the mix. Around the same time, Porsche announced its interest in joining Formula One.
Now, the FIA has confirmed that Porsche is still in discussions with Formula One teams (probably not with Red Bull), which is something that was believed to be happening until now but did not have an official confirmation. Well, it looks like the FIA themselves have confirmed this.
Porsche's officials did confirm that they are not going to proceed with Red Bull, as well as their interest in joining the sport, but it was unclear how that will happen. Now, with talks with multiple teams confirmed by the FIA, things might be moving forward.
Another major decision made by the FIA in its most recent meeting was the approval of the 2023 Formula 1 calendar, which will include 24 races. After a thorough review, there will be six race weekends that will feature Sprint sessions.
FIA officials have promised that their workflow has been adjusted to allow all the Sprint races planned for 2023 to be regulated at the highest level. This should raise the stakes in the championship even further, if you ask us.
As a comparison, a temporary calendar for the 2023 Formula E season has been approved, and it will include 12 races, out of which are to be confirmed, and two others need to pass the FIA Safety and Technical checks.
Formula One will be an even safer sport in 2023, as the technical regulations will involve increasing the size of mirrors to improve blind-spot visibility, as well as strengthening the roll hoops after an internal inquiry regarding Zhou Guanyu's crash at the British Grand Prix. Mind you, those roll hoops were strengthened since then, but now they are mandatory through the rule book.
From 2023 onwards, or at least until the rules change again, Formula 1 will have a new procedure to determine grid positions after multiple penalties have been applied. That part has not been made public in this release.
The FIA Super License Points system has also received an update in the form of a temporary relaxation of the requirements for the championships listed in Supplement 1, counting for the points system.
The decision is valid only for championships ending no later than 31.03.2023 and was made to help drivers who have suffered from reduced sporting activity in 2022 due to the pandemic. It is unclear if the new system will allow drivers like Colton Herta to be eligible for an FIA Super License for Formula 1 or not, but that is a different matter.
Back in August, Audi announced that it is joining the FIA Formula One World Championship as a power unit manufacturer, and this has made all the people who developed the new PU (power unit) regulations happy about attracting new teams into the mix. Around the same time, Porsche announced its interest in joining Formula One.
Now, the FIA has confirmed that Porsche is still in discussions with Formula One teams (probably not with Red Bull), which is something that was believed to be happening until now but did not have an official confirmation. Well, it looks like the FIA themselves have confirmed this.
Porsche's officials did confirm that they are not going to proceed with Red Bull, as well as their interest in joining the sport, but it was unclear how that will happen. Now, with talks with multiple teams confirmed by the FIA, things might be moving forward.
Another major decision made by the FIA in its most recent meeting was the approval of the 2023 Formula 1 calendar, which will include 24 races. After a thorough review, there will be six race weekends that will feature Sprint sessions.
FIA officials have promised that their workflow has been adjusted to allow all the Sprint races planned for 2023 to be regulated at the highest level. This should raise the stakes in the championship even further, if you ask us.
As a comparison, a temporary calendar for the 2023 Formula E season has been approved, and it will include 12 races, out of which are to be confirmed, and two others need to pass the FIA Safety and Technical checks.
Formula One will be an even safer sport in 2023, as the technical regulations will involve increasing the size of mirrors to improve blind-spot visibility, as well as strengthening the roll hoops after an internal inquiry regarding Zhou Guanyu's crash at the British Grand Prix. Mind you, those roll hoops were strengthened since then, but now they are mandatory through the rule book.
From 2023 onwards, or at least until the rules change again, Formula 1 will have a new procedure to determine grid positions after multiple penalties have been applied. That part has not been made public in this release.
The FIA Super License Points system has also received an update in the form of a temporary relaxation of the requirements for the championships listed in Supplement 1, counting for the points system.
The decision is valid only for championships ending no later than 31.03.2023 and was made to help drivers who have suffered from reduced sporting activity in 2022 due to the pandemic. It is unclear if the new system will allow drivers like Colton Herta to be eligible for an FIA Super License for Formula 1 or not, but that is a different matter.
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