A change in the guidelines? It’s not fair to change the rules in the middle of the season, Max Verstappen is angry. What does he think of the FIA’s controversial verdict?

The Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) is responding to the drivers’ cries and intends to address the problems with bouncing monoposts for safety reasons. So, ahead of the Canadian Grand Prix, they are introducing a new directive, but Red Bull, specifically Max Verstappen, doesn’t like it. He finds the FIA’s decision unfair. Why?

The FIA is introducing a new directive ahead of the Canadian Grand Prix, which should solve the problems of porpoising, or the bouncing of cars on the straights, in the medium term.

Or at least significantly reduced. In practice, it will look like the International Automobile Federation will set a maximum level of bouncing that all teams must fit into.

If they don’t, they have to fix it in any way they can, or else the team in question may even be disqualified.

There is currently a recipe for this bouncing, but the solution that is being offered is undesirable for the world of Formula 1. If Formula 1 does not find some improvements in the development of the monoposts, the teams will have to accept, for example, a change in ground clearance.

And that means a loss of performance and a deterioration in cornering downforce. The bottom line is that this decision by the FIA may indeed affect the distribution of power across the field.

Case in point is Mercedes, which still has considerable problems with porpoising and already its drivers have to brake far ahead of the ideal braking point to fit into a corner at all.

So for Lewis Hamilton and co. this is definitely not an advantage, quite the opposite in fact. Indeed, the claim that the FIA has not made the right decision at the moment was backed up by reigning world champion Max Verstappen.

“I think it’s a bit disappointing that the FIA is changing the rules again in the middle of the season. It’s not even about whether it affects us more or less than other teams. But I think a lot of teams have done a great job of not having such problems with porpoising, so there are ways around it,” Verstappen said in an interview with Racer magazine.

“If you lift the car, you won’t have these problems. But you will lose power. But if you can’t design the car properly, it’s not the rules’ fault, it’s your fault. It’s a shame what the FIA has done,” he concluded.

So why did the FIA make this decision? It is simply concerned about the health of the drivers and the potential problems caused by bouncing. After all, it wasn’t long ago that the vast majority of drivers agreed that it couldn’t be done this way anyway.

Sources