Forcing drivers to use all three types of tires during the race, Karun Chandhok’s proposal

Formula 1 fans have been disappointed by the last two Grand Prix races, Baku and Miami, both won by Red Bull. However, 1996 world champion Damon Hill defended the show by writing on Twitter: “Some people don’t appreciate this race. It tells me that they don’t understand Formula 1.”

The stated problem is not so much that Christian Horner’s team won its fourth and fifth victories since the beginning of the season, but rather that neither of the two races has been particularly exciting, with the entire field opting for single-stop strategies.

More “exciting” races to watch

In the absence of action, suspense, and intrigue behind the battle of Red Bull teammates, Chandhok stated on Twitter that the rules should be modified to stipulate that all three tire compounds must be used in a race that is not declared wet at any point. “Cream always rises, but it would be more exciting to watch!” he assures in the latest Sky Sports F1 podcast.

“I think Baku was a terrible race, it was a real snore-fest,” he declared. “And I think this race [Miami] was decent, kind of in the middle of the pack.”

This novelty would then require a minimum of two pit stops. The former driver of the Caterham F1 Team assures that several engineers in the pit lane have told him that this hypothesis is not possible in Miami because the soft tire « is not good enough » according to them. « They would all have had to use it for six to eight laps, which would have disrupted things during the pit stops », he explains.

« I still haven’t understood why it didn’t happen. Every time you talk to someone from F1 or the FIA, they say, “Oh, that’s an interesting idea, we should consider it.” »

He has been demanding this change for seven years

Former F1 driver Martin Brundle, who co-hosts the podcast with Natalie Pinkhman, agrees with this idea because, in his opinion, the best race was the one from the fringe drivers with two pit stops, reaching the finish without needing a third one. According to Brundle, back in his time, drivers were accustomed to falling off the cliff. Everything seemed ready for the last five laps, and suddenly, people were running out of fuel. Nowadays, they manage it much better, both at Pirelli and within the teams. During that period, cars didn’t start with a full tank of fuel either and had to refuel during their pit stops, resulting in different strategies and battles on the track.

Chandhok is categorically stating, I have been talking about it since 2016, that changing the rules to stipulate that drivers must use all three compounds does not create a “fake race” but rather allows for “some variations” in strategies. Exactly, retorts Brundle, because many critics, especially purist fans, say, “Oh, you’re doing too much to create a show and a fake race.”

“And I think you will achieve some convergence because all strategists have the same mindset or the same personality, and they will likely find the best optimal strategy,” Chandhok retorts.

It seems that we are in a more open culture. We are trying sprints, we are trying qualification formats, we are trying different things. I would like to see some variety for the main Grand Prix because I feel like we haven’t done much between the lights going out and the checkered flag.