Which races should DRS be used at?

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F1 is almost halfway through its second season using the Drag Reduction System.

DRS remains a bone of contention for many and is a frequent source of debate in our post-race ‘Rate the Race’ features.

F1 teams have indicated they’re willing to listen to fans on devices introduced to improve ‘the show’ such as DRS. With that in mind, is DRS needed at every track on the calendar?

Should F1 try running without DRS at some tracks? Is it not needed anywhere? Or does every F1 circuit need a DRS zone? Cast your vote below.

Which races should DRS be used at?

Take your pick of the current circuits which feature on the F1 calendar which have held at least one race. You can choose as many tracks as you prefer or select ‘none’ if you would rather not see DRS used at all:

Which races should DRS be used at?

  • None (4%)
  • Brazil (Interlagos) (3%)
  • Abu Dhabi (Yas Marina) (7%)
  • India (Buddh) (5%)
  • Korea (KIC) (5%)
  • Japan (Suzuka) (5%)
  • Singapore (Marina Bay) (7%)
  • Italy (Monza) (3%)
  • Belgium (Spa-Francorchamps) (2%)
  • Hungary (Hungaroring) (7%)
  • Germany (Nurburgring) (4%)
  • Germany (Hockenheim) (4%)
  • Britain (Silverstone) (4%)
  • Europe (Valencia) (7%)
  • Canada (Circuit Villeneuve) (3%)
  • Monaco (Monte-Carlo) (5%)
  • Spain (Catalunya) (7%)
  • Bahrain (BIC) (6%)
  • China (Shanghai) (3%)
  • Malaysia (Sepang) (3%)
  • Australia (Albert Park) (6%)

Total Voters: 381

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Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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104 comments on “Which races should DRS be used at?”

  1. mattshaw85 (@)
    13th July 2012, 10:06

    It’s a difficult topic, as my understanding was the idea for DRS was to counteract the dirty air coming off the car in front to enable overtaking. It just seems way too easy to get past in a lot of instances. Should more of an effort not be made to simplify the aerodynamics? Maybe less downforce would be a better way to go? But would that have the desired effect?

    1. FIA should establish fixed aerodynamic points for all cars and it should be a lot less than now. They could develop aerodynamics, but just don’t increase downforce.

      1. The point of developing aerodynamics is increasing downforce, but I agree with you to an extent. I think that FIA should release very rigid specification of front and rear wings of the car, thus locking much of the aero development (and saving costs). However they should allow more freedom in other, non-areo areas. I’d love to see open engine development, but sadly this isn’t going to happen.

      2. I completely disagree. And will point out that they already have a huge number of regulations reducing down force. And they introduce more every year.

    2. @mattshaw85

      Should more of an effort not be made to simplify the aerodynamics? Maybe less downforce would be a better way to go?

      That would be ideal, but the teams would shoot it down in a matter of minutes. They know that the more downforce they have, the more competitive they will be, so they will fight any more to minimise downforce levels.

    3. Jayfreese (@)
      13th July 2012, 11:21

      I believe it’s more due to the fact that where the DRS zone is than the DRS itself, F1 fanatics have been used to it now, at least I am, but zones need an improvement to make passings not easy nor impossible. It’s always the same old things with pros and cons, so an average positionning would be fine for zones.
      Just remember F1 has to be difficult and overtaking is part of it.

      1. Agreed with Jay, if the ‘zone’ can put the passing car almost into a position to pass at the next corner, and allows the defending car to defend, that’s great. Make both work at their jobs.

    4. The FIA already tried to simplify the aerodynamics in 2009. It didn’t work, actually you got the contrary: teams started to work much more heavily into detail; in the area’s where development is still possible, they came up with very refined wings and bodywork, as well as taking up old concepts previously dumped for their sensitivity (exhaust blown diffusers). I think everybody can agree that comparing 2008 to 2009, the year where aerodynamics were still relative simple, there weren’t more overtakes. The double diffuser might have something to do with that, but not by a long shot it can explain the failure of those regulations.

      The end result is that these current aerodynamics are so sensitive that when the air is disturbed, you loose alot of downforce in the corners behind an other car. Set up even more stringent regulations and you can assume it’ll only get worse.

      I think it is much better actually to loosen the regulations in area’s that aren’t that sensitive to disturbed air and/or that don’t create huge amounts of drag. That way cars will have the downforce necessarily to keep close to the other car in the corner. I for one am huge supporter for return of ground effect. To reduce speed you could go back to grooved tyres.

      The government body of F1 should take its lessons out of past experiences on this one. Attempt to remove downforce, and teams will only be more fanatic to claw it back. And they are VERY creative at doing that, curtesy to the EBD’s which are getting ever nearer to the downforce output of last year.

      As a side note; decreasing aerodynamics increases costs. As I said teams will want to claw downforce back. It must have cost Red Bull and Ferrari tuns of money for their several iterations of the sidepods on development, crashtest and implementation.

      1. I would love to see ground effect back!

        1. You are right.
          The wind these days just have way too many flaps, winglets and things hanging around. This kind of fine detail only makes the wings more sensitive to air pressure changes. Just look at those front wings!

          They should impose a 2 flap front wing and let teams get creative.

  2. For me, DRS should only be used on tracks where overtaking is potentially difficult or where races have always been dull. For example most of recent additions to the calendar but also a few old ones like Spain or Hungary. On High Speed tracks like Montréal, Silverstone, both German tracks, Spa and Monza there’s absolutely no need for DRS because these tracks always produces some great racing in the past. Same for Malaysia and Brazil. Suzuka is a great track but unless you have a mixed up grid like 2005, there won´t be much action on track and one has to say that DRS worked pretty well last year.

    1. exactly why use a DRS zone at a track that produces good racing anyway. This would just make it too easy. A very short DRS zone could work at some tracks so that it allows the car to get into the slipstream of the car ahead and then it wouldn’t be as artificial.

      1. it would good if it had a pre-defined zone in which it could be used that wasn’t ended by the braking zone ie. you flip it open coming off a corner to get into the slip stream but can’t keep it open for the whole of the straight. that way the following car would get into a position to pass but wouldn’t necessarily be able to breeze past as they often do now.

        however, i think we would still end up with too many motorway style passes, which i really hate. i thought one of the best races this year was monaco because it was tense, much like barcelona last year (though admittedly that did involve DRS – i’ve said before that an exciting race is more down to specific circumstance than general factors).

        silverstone and canada were both rubbish because it became obvious that the following driver would have no trouble getting past as soon as they got to the DRS zone. boring, no tension.

        i voted ‘none’ – we didn’t have it in 2009 and there were dozens of overtakes.

    2. I agree. I think DRS should be used almost everywhere, bar Montreal and Spa.

      I understand and agree with the concept of the DRS, but sometimes it goes too far and there seems to be like an “obligation” to use it everywhere. At Spa and Montreal it’s really not needed.

      Specially if they set the DRS zone in the best overtaking spot on the circuit. If they want to use it at those circuits famous for giving good opportunities of overtaking, then they should set the DRS zone at an unusual place. For example, at Spa, they could put the DRS area in the pit straight, leading to the harpin. Or at Montreal, in that bit of straigh before the harpin.

    3. Did you watch Monza last year? DRS barely did anything.

  3. DRS is just a video-game gimmick. It’s too artificial. So I voted “none”

  4. I have the perfect solution to the dirty air.
    What you do is you get the teams to design and develop tgheir individual laminar flow ‘hoses’ coming off the cars diffusers and rear wings.
    It won’t necessarily be pretty, but it means that theorhetically the dirty air will no longer be an issue, so the cars can follow each other very closely through increibly fast, aero-dependant corners.
    Then, to make sure they’re playing ball, each car can be the subject of scrutineering so that the stewards check that it does actually work to a certain tolerance.
    Good idea?

    1. Drop Valencia!
      13th July 2012, 11:01

      I have suggested a mandatory “Grid” at the rear of the car, would take some getting used to but would work.

    2. Or just make the aerodynamics of the cars simpler and clutter free. That will make the air behind much cleaner.

      1. But that would decrease the overall downforce and therefore speed of the cars, nd right now, it’s captivating to see cars going round copse with only the slightest lift in qualy

    3. You don’t need to have the teams develop together. If they regulate the aerodynamic wake in a sane way, the result would be the same without sacrificing competition.

  5. I voted none, but if DRS is here to stay, then it surely can’t hurt to try a race without it.

    Also, the placements for DRS have been silly. Why do they put DRS at places where overtaking will happen anyway? The only races where DRS wasn’t placed on a part of the track where there would have been overtaking anyway were Monaco and Valencia. That’s only because those two tracks have little overtaking to begin with at any part.

    1. I don’t mind DRS so much but I agree it’s silly to put it in places where overtaking is likely to happen anyway…surely it would be better where possible to put it onto a section in advance of these areas to encourage the cars to be close to each other. So for Silverstone put it on the new start/finish straight, allow cars to close up before Abbey and if they can hold it through the Arena they get their chance down the National(?) straight where the DRS zone was this year

    2. I agree. I have been saying since the introduction of drs that it should be put in places where overtaking never usually occurs. This way it will create opportunities, rather than just making easy passes, or at allow the following driver to close in a bit, giving them more of an opportunity when they get to the standard overtaking spot.

      Take Hockenheim for example, no doubt they will put the drs zone on the long straight up to the hairpin, but I would suggest they put it on the short straight between turns 1+2. This will either create a new overtaking opportunity, or put the following car a little closer going onto the long straight so we can see more moves there.

  6. I’ve always had this theory that DRS as an idea was concocted by FOTA, Bernie and the FIA as a way to make racing better at the particularly crappily desgned Tilke-Dromes. Tilke designed monstrosities like Yas Marina and Valencia lend themselves well to DRS. Because that’s the only way to overtake. By going a lot faster than your opponents in a straight line — there’s no other option. But on the other hand the few “legacy” circuits we have left on the calendar- Monaco, Silverstone etc. create their own overtaking opportunities by good course layout and demanding driver skill. DRS makes a race at Valencia better, but it can never make the perfection of Suzuka or Spa better.
    P.S– I’ve always liked the idea of limiting the times of DRS can be used during a race to around 12 times per race. I hate it but not as much as some others on here.

    1. (@dz06) Couldn’t agree more. I think they should extent the potential for KERS somehow, get rid of the majority of Tilke tracks and DRS altogether. KERS can be deployed more tactically, and STILL give one driver a potential advantage on a straight. The amount of times I’ve heard the commentators enjoying a good battle until the driver behind opens up the DRS and they say ‘and there’s nothing he can do’, in a rather resigned and dissapointed way.

      If they want to keep DRS (which ruins almost my favourite track on the calendar, Spa), then perhaps allow drivers to make more than one move in defence? Maybe dangerous, but I’m utterly fed up of the many of the drivers infront simply giving up once the other has DRS, because there really is precious little they can do.

      (Plus the other reason I want DRS banned is I’m a Vettel loather and it’s the only way he can overtake and I’m sick of him winning undeserved championships).

  7. I voted none, simply because I would rather see them do something to actually solve the problem, instead of fixing it like I fix my phones rear cover. With duct tape. Yeah it sort of solves the issue, but its not right is it?
    What about actually fixing F1? I know it wont be easy, and I know it can’t be done overnight. Maybe 5 years? Maybe 10. But it can be done if they really wanted to.
    So far, I think Pirelli can do the job. F1 would still be more exciting to casual fans then it has been in many years, and be much more enjoyable to the more “purist” viewers.

    1. (@mads) how would you suggest fixing it?

      1. @sgt-pepper
        Simply start to reduce the wing size on the cars, slowly replace that with either better tyres, and a shaped floor instead the dead straight one they use now.
        It would make it easier for the cars to run closer to each other and thereby make it easier to overtake everywhere without the use of DRS.
        It will take time and to reduce costs has to be done in steps. But it is possible. I don’t think that DRS is necessary as a stop-gap solution. We should simply live with fewer, but better overtakes and slowly get more close racing without using artificial means like the DRS.

        1. @(mads) I’m afraid I don’t know enough about ground effects to comment on whether I feel it’s wise or not (maybe Keith, or someone who does can). And when you say reduce wing size, would that entail less downforce? Please excuse my relative ignorance on this particular subject.

          Absolutely agree with you about living with fewer, but better overtakes.

          1. woops, meant (@mads)

          2. @sgt-pepper
            Basically ground effects produce downforce regardless of the air ‘quality’ it sucks in. So the turbulence coming off the wings of the car in front wont affect the downforce generated on the floor of the car behind.
            The problem is that if the car lifts slightly, or if the nose dives / hits a bump etc. which blocks the airflow going under the car, it looses all its effect and that can be incredibly dangerous at high speeds.
            which is why I don’t support side skirts and that kind of extreme measures. Just allow the designers to make better use of the diffuser and floor.
            And yes reducing the size of the wings will reduce the downforce. The wings will be similarly affected by the turbulence, but with smaller wings a smaller proportion of the cars performance and downforce is generated by then so the loss of overall time will be reduced.
            Say that, with today’s cars, (I don’t have any idea about the real figures) 50 percent downforce is generated by the floor. The last 50 from the wings on top.
            So if the wings loose 30% of their performance within 0.5 of a second off the car in front, while the floor remains the same, the total downforce level of the car behind will have 85% left of its normal downforce.
            So if you changed the floor/wing ratio to 70% floor generated downforce and just 30% wing generated downforce with the same loss of 30% wing downforce within 0.5 seconds, the downforce will remain at 91% downforce.
            How significant the loss actually is, I don’t know. The floor downforce will likely still suffer a bit, but not nearly as much as the wings.
            So reducing wing generated downforce and increasing floor generating downforce will allow the cars the maintain a larger portion of their performance when they are running close to each other.
            So that’s the theory behind my view at least. : )

  8. I’ve voted for none. What should really be done is that tracks where overtaking is very difficult should be looked at with the goal of modifying the track to make the racing better. Some tracks this will never be possible, like Monaco, but that race has its own appeal and has never needed lots of overtaking to make for an exciting and fascinating race.

    F1 needs to accept that sometimes you do have dull races. That’s a fact in all forms of motorsport, and something you can’t get away from. Making Whacky Races might seem appealing but it spoils the purity of the competition for me.

    Fact is, there’s close racing with good wheel to wheel combat on some tracks and not others. This to me suggests that the problem is not aerodynamics, but rather the layouts of the tracks. You can point at a track layout and universally everyone will say you can overtake at the same corners. Why can’t the new tilkedromes be built with corners like this? Austin has been built with this philosophy in mind, so let’s see how that works out.

  9. It’s been good in the last couple of races, setting moves up but not making them too easy. I like the way Silverstone doesn’t have it on the main (Hangar) straight, but encourages passing somewhere else too.
    I voted for five or six tracks that don’t have a long straight, and maybe need a helping hand.

  10. All or none.
    DRS is a half baked solution to a problem which still exists – the cars not being able to pass due to loss of downforce in the wake of a car.
    I think the solution needs to be far more radical than DRS.

    My solution is:
    Give the drivers the ability to toggle between preset wing setups as they go around the track. This should be available at all times by all drivers.
    Bring back the ability for engineers to adjust most of the other settings on the car (mix levels, revs etc). This frees up the driver to concentrate on using their aero. This sort of stuff is boring (yet important), so why not let the engineers do it, instead of burdening the driver. Plus, the teams inability to change settings on the car remotely is incongruous with modern technology. Having to radio the driver and ask them to physically turn a dial is so 1998.

    The number of aero settings allowed will be dictated by regulations and the ability to change the settings will be governed by parc ferme regulations. An idea of what the settings will be is: High Downforce/High Drag = following car in corners; Optimal Downforce/Drag = clear running in corners; Low Downforce/Low Drag = straights; Option = free setting for teams to use at their discretion, be it favouring front or back to deal with tyre wear, or a specific rain setup if they think it will rain.

    This will let drivers follow other cars without losing too much downforce in the corners, and also allow drafting on straights.

    1. F1 is already getting away from the concept of a single person operating the car, this would simply take it further into the realms of multiple people ‘driving’ the cars.

  11. Should it not also be added, How many times a driver could enable his/her DRS per race Distance!!

  12. DRS should be used at all of the circuits, or none of them.

    1. why?

      Do you think teams would start designing their cars differently (i.e. optimized to run without DRS or something) if not used everywhere?

      1. If people think that DRS should be used at every circuit, shouldn’t it always be the same number of zones, of the same length, coming off the back of a corner of the same speed? I don’t understand why it should be used at every circuit when it can’t be used in a uniform manner at those circuits anyway.

        1. The same for me @matt90, If its used at all (I prefer not to have it, at least not as its now with the 1second gap and zones) I would say not to use it at many tracks, at some use it on one place, some on 2 or even 3, dependent on the track’s layout

    2. Exactly. With the same reasoning, I also think DRS should be either “liberalised” – same regulations in the race as in qualifying – or removed altogether. The best, I think, would be if they instead try and fix the problem DRS was made to fix, instead of fixing DRS. Regulating the aero wake would be a good start, for example.

  13. 3 DRS polls vs. one tyre one.

    Are we going to keep having DRS polls until the punters give the “right” result?

    Reminds me of the Lisbon Treaty….

    1. I notice there is a “None” option, but not an “All” option.

      Will the data be aggregated out when the results are presented, so that those who voted for “all” circuits will be accurately represented?

      Again, the accurate way to present this data is:
      All
      Some (sub-poll for which ones)
      None

      That’s not what we’ve got, however.

      1. I notice there is a “None” option, but not an “All” option.

        I’m sure this doesn’t need to be pointed out but you just tick all the tracks.

        A ‘none’ option is required because there is no other way of registering that voting intention.

        What you’re suggesting would offer multiple ways of registering the same voting intention, which would obviously bias the poll in favour of one side of the debate.

        1. On the contrary, the way the poll is presented, and the language of the question posed, the natural assumption for the default voting state is “some”. Only at the end does the “None” option appear. The Title states “Which” tracks, which also leads to a strong cognitive bias, before the poll is even displayed, towards the “Some” choice.

          Voting “All” requires the polled person to separately select every option except the last one, a far more lengthy and error-prone task. Furthermore, as the user goes down the list, intending to select every single one, every choice leads to the opportunity for them to change their mind and go for “some”. It takes 20 times as long for someone to choose “All” as it does “None”, and at every point, they are effectively being asked to validate that choice again.

          The bias in the poll, therefore is twofold: one of cognition and one of effort. The “none” option requires a single selection and a single decision.

          1. the natural assumption for the default voting state is “some”

            Clearly it isn’t. Readers can select whichever point on the spectrum of opinion best reflects their point of view – anywhere between ‘all’ or ‘none’ – while also allowing them to show which particular tracks are most in need of DRS, if that is what their view is.

            As I already pointed out, your suggestion would give people the ability to vote for the same option twice, which is a far more blatant example of the kind of “bias” you accuse me of.

          2. The “none” option requires a single selection and a single decision.

            Which is easily made by anyone who rejects DRS.

          3. @mike, I think that is exactly what @hairs is getting at. To vote not to have DRS you give only one selection. To say all tracks is more work (ticking all boxes). Alhough its easy enough to just tick one of those boxes, and they are above the “none” option.

            Funny thing is, you can even click all tracks AND the none option at once, they are not mutually exclusive!

          4. @bascb I thought that he was saying that the “none” option was hidden in the sea of which one’s to pick. To be honest, either way, I don’t think it’s of significance.

          5. @keithcollantine

            Readers *can* select, in the same way that if I created the same poll, and when someone selected “no”, I flashed 20 popups at them asking them if they’re sure they want to select no.

            And as @bascb points out, you can tick “None” and also “Some” or “All”. This situation shouldn’t be possible, the poll’s structure is badly flawed, and its data cannot be relied upon. A exclusive “All / Some / None” with a sub-poll would prevent that.

            The situation you describe would require someone to intentionally game the results. While that’s entirely likely on the internet (and I have found the “rate the race” results to be increasingly out of kilter with what I’m watching), this poll could have been structured in such a way as to make that difficult. I’m not suggesting that when you created this poll, you deliberately set out to game the results. I’m suggesting that your own extremely strong opinion of DRS is subconsciously colouring your view of the subject, just as if I were asked to write a column on Grosjean or Maldonado, while I may attempt to be neutral, my subconscious would natter at me in the background, and that would mean that it is entirely likely that the tone would lean towards betraying my dislike for the former and contempt for the latter. It’s human nature.

          6. @keithcollantine

            So, since the poll prevents gaming of the results by selecting “All” and then a full sub-set of “Some”, how does it deal with selecting “None” and “Some” (or, indeed, if someone selects “All” and “None”), which would be very easy to do since they are required to tick every box in turn?

            What was the voter’s original intention if they clicked “None” and “Some”? Do we discard the result? Ignore the “None”? Or the “Some”? What if they clicked “Brazil” and “None”? They made a mistake, but which one is correct?

    2. @hairs

      Are we going to keep having DRS polls until the punters give the “right” result?

      What’s the “right” result?

      1. I don’t understand how he can accuse you of bias, I mean, you have openly stated that you think DRS is too artificial.

      2. @keithcollantine

        What’s the “right” result?

        Good question. This question of “how many tracks should DRS be used at” was asked not that long ago and 45% of people answered “all”. Why are we being asked again? What changed? Why has the format of the repeat poll been changed so that answering “all” is 20 times more complicated and difficult than answering “none”? In other situations where polls revisit the same subject, it has been the case that the same poll structure is re-used.

        That positive result doesn’t get get mentioned editorially, as I discussed elsewhere, and all references to the DRS polls which I have read are reported as the majority of readers “disliking” DRS, because ambiguous answers are combined with negative answers. Why?

        I don’t know. I certainly don’t know why this poll has been put up, and why it is formatted the way it is.

    3. OmarR-Pepper (@)
      13th July 2012, 14:03

      @hairs well I imagine sometimes having to publish some articles EVERYDAY must be nerve-racking. And anyway, our opinions in polls, while interesting, don’t move an inch of what is decided by FIA, FOTA, Bernie, Totd or any other big boss.
      Probably if we as fans had some sponsors we could be heard.

  14. DRS should be used at all circuits, but only at areas where you don’t see overtaking.

    For example, having a DRS zone on the start/finish straight at Monaco into St Devote makes sense, as it is very difficult to pass there without it these days.

    Similarly, having a DRS zone after Radillion at Spa on the way to Les Combes is a silly decision as we already see many overtaking moves into there without DRS. Why not put DRS along the S/F straigh at Spa too? How often to we see overtaking moves into La Source these days? I can’t remember many other than Hamilton on Raikkonen in 2008.

    1. DRS should be used at all circuits, but only at areas where you don’t see overtaking.

      I think that was the original intention, but then someone realised that if they put the DRS zone in those areas, there was no guarantee that the system would promote overtaking there – and if the DRS zone wasn’t located in the traditional overtaking areas, then there was a very real chance that there would be no overtaking there, either, and all of this would prove that a) DRS was an expensive waste of time, and b) no matter what anybody did, overtaking would be impossible in Formula 1.

    2. that’s a solid opinion @magnificent-geoffrey, but I still think there’s no need to have DRS at all (most, any?) track

      1. What about Valencia? Helped that race…

    3. @magnificent-geoffrey, I had typed a comment, but it was pretty much what you’d said. I agree with that assessment, although I’m not convinced DRS is a good thing at all. I can kind of understand DRS if it were at a part of the track where there isn’t an enormous straight already, promoting overtaking in different parts, and still allowing us to see passing outside the DRS zones, since it won’t be a slam dunk that you’ll get past the other car in it. And seeing as though we will probably have DRS even into the new regulations of 2014, we should at least make it into what I’m sure the plan was: promote overtaking, but not to guarantee the driver making the move that they’ll get by.

  15. Cleaning up the aero wake of the cars is not particularly difficult, it just takes a different approach to the design of the cars. This was proposed as part of the rules change for 2014 (2013 at the time); that a much more significant proportion of the downforce could be generated by venturi floor designs, with the wings of the car made significantly smaller. It worked very well for ChampCar, and there’s no reason why it couldn’t work for F1 (and indeed it did in the 70s and 80s). However the idea was overuled for a few reasons. The first being that the current aero concept is a known quantity. Even the switch in 2009 didn’t really represent a fundamental change in concept. Downforce levels can be carefully controlled by limiting the size and shape of certain planes, and by having something approaching a standardised floor design, with its current stepped plank. Because of this, the FIA can make subtle tweaks to the rules to control how much downforce cars are able to generate. By contrast, ground effect is not that widely understood, and it proved hard to create a set of rules which would guarantee that downforce remained at acceptable levels.

    Secondly there were objections on the grounds of safety – Ground effect cars of old were notoriously unpredictable, with the aero balance altering with the height of the car. This lead to some huge accidents when cars bottomed out and suddenly lost all downforce in a high speed corner.

    The third objection was about the level of competition. In 2009 we saw a fairly minor tweak to the rules in the scheme of things, but this lead to one team initially gaining a considerable advantage. This is within a known rules structure. if you fundamentally change the aero concept, it’s possible (in fact very likely) that initially some teams will excel while others will struggle. And with something as ‘invisible’ as ground effect, it might be hard for teams to see what others were doing. The current formula is well understood, and from the fastest car to the slowest, you usually see a less than 5% speed differential. Substantially changing the rules would almost certainly cause this gap to get much much wider.

    However, despite the objections, I still say this is a good way to go. I’d expand the concept however, and say that moveable aero parts should be allowed. Imagine cars with aero planes which are constantly shifting and adjusting to give the best performance at any given moment. Complex electronics which cause the car to fold its wings back and hunker down to shed all its drag on the straights, then deploy air brakes and add downforce while cornering. It’s probably a dream which we’ll never see in these days of relative austerity. These are some of the richest sporting teams in the world and yet they can’t agree on a cost for a new set of engines, let alone a new aero concept. Shame though, as that would be ace, and would once again put the focus on technology which should be at the heart of the formula.

  16. I voted Australia, Bahrain, Spain, Monaco, Valencia, Hungary, Singapore, Abu Dhabi.

  17. There’s only two answers to this question. All of them or none of them. What’s the point in having this device available for only a certain, select number of races?

    People complain about the lack of transparency in the sport, how things are chopped and changed. I hardly see how this is going to help. The casual viewer wont understand the reasons entirely. Even when you try to explain it, some still wont get it.

  18. If it’s going to be a part of the rules, it should be used for all races. That’s all really.

  19. The reduction in downforce at this point would probably come thru smaller or no wings which would result in less sponsor ad room. Hard to believe we’ll see that.

  20. I voted for no DRS. As I watched the British Grand Prix, I started thinking about casual F1 watchers – the sort that would watch their home GP, maybe Monaco or just if they happened to catch it on TV. These sort of people are on the cusp of becoming new fans and the sport should do everything it can to encourage these people to start watching more regularly. Trouble is, the sport has become jargon-filled. The commentary during the British GP talked of prime and option tyres, DRS, KERS, defensive driving rules, drivers going ‘purple’, jumping cars at the pit stops, stint lengths, Q1, Q2, Q3, yellow flags, DRS zones, etc.

    F1 is too complicated for the new or casual fan, and as a result is probably difficult to follow and will detract viewers from watching regularly. Having DRS at only a few races will make it even more complicated. The system must either be kept permanently or scrapped altogether. After watching some of the questionable overtakes this year, and considering the complexity of the sport already, I would vote for the latter.

    1. (@cornflakes) If people don’t understand the sport they don’t deserve to watch it. Although I agree with you on scrapping it, I feel we should scrap it for the opposite reason – that it’s too populist and I would argue distorts the racing the achieve more overtakes.

      Enough things have been ruined (particularly since the 80s) to appeal to the idiotic ‘wider audience’. F1 is one of the few things remaining that has preserved its complexities, subtleties and intelligence, and if the dim-witted masses can’t figure out what a yellow flag is they can go watch cars turn left in NASCAR.

  21. In my view, the DRS is a stop-gap solution to a fundamental problem. As long as F1 cannot or will not fix the issue of aero-overdependence, because of which a trailing car can’t go around corners as quick because of the dirty air coming from ithe car in front, DRS is a necessary evil.

    I love what DRS does for (most of) the Grands Prix, though. :-)

  22. We needed DRS + Bridgestone tyres. It’s the pirellis that are problematic, not drs.

  23. I fear we could have an F1 closer to code masters new “stars of f1” game rather than the f1 2012, if drs continues to be used as it was in Canada.

  24. I’m saying none. DRS is a nice way for the teams to slap one another on the back and say, “Jolly good, we’ve fixed the overtaking problem. More gin?” but that’s about it. In addition, nobody who pays the blindest bit of attention has fallen for it.

    As others have said, the problem with overtaking is caused by the over-reliance of cars on overbody aerodynamics, creating the dreaded “dirty air.” Rewrite the rules to place a greater emphasis on ground effects, and restrict what the teams are allowed to do with overbody aero, and you’ve got a formula for cars that can follow one another more closely through fast corners, and therefore are more likely to be able to overtake one another.

    Of course, there was an agreement in principle for regulations just like this to be implemented. But some of the teams didn’t want to upset the status quo, so those plans were abandoned. Which – as a related point – is why getting the teams to write the rulebook isn’t actually a very good idea.

  25. What I like about DRS is that it creates the threat of overtaking, if one driver is closing on another, whereas in the past this didn’t necessarily generate much excitement, with passing being so difficult. Nevertheless I voted “none”, because it’s unfair and artificial. The latter reason is why I wouldn’t second any proposals like ‘enable DRS everywhere at the track, but limit its use to 90 seconds per race’ (what they have in FR3.5), as that just detracts from the purity of the sport without creating many overtaking opportunities. Finally, DRS is potentially dangerous. We have been ensured that the DRS cannot remain in the open position, but that’s exactly what happened to Schumacher in Canada. Fortunately, nothing has happened yet, but it’s still better to rule out one potential source of freak accidents.

    Finally, let me make it clear that I voted “none” based on what I would like to see, what is best for the sport is for someone else to worry about.

    1. davidnotcoulthard
      13th July 2012, 13:52

      Yes, artificial, spot on, although if all drivers are allowed to use it everywhere on the track at any time, regardless as to who/what is in front of him, not just the drivers overtaking, We’ll be in for a treat: The driver who is the best at deploying the DRS will win, and with more factors deciding one’s ability, the races shouldn’t be boring.

  26. davidnotcoulthard
    13th July 2012, 13:47

    At the tracks in the F1 2012 game. Not the ones in real life.

  27. The things that should change in my opinion are:
    more fixed elements, such as wings, chassis, floor, diffuser => less focus on aero, less aero wake
    rock hard tyres => tyres are not punished for trying to overtake, just try again
    total free engines, with a limit on fuel(energy) consumed. Electric, diesel, hydrogen, rocketfuel etc. => more horse power, with less downforce and tyre-grip menas harder to drive cars, means more overtaking because of small errors.
    Also the combination of unlimted possibilities but a fixed amount of energy to be used in the F1 engineering environment, make F1 really the place to be for manufactors again.

    I know the teams won’t like it at first, but if F1 really wants to be the absolute pinnacle of both sport and development this should do the trick!

    @keithcollantine, maybe can you ask @JohnBeamer to write an article with all kinds of proposed/fantasy rules, like the ones I mention above and their possible impact on racing/overtaking? I’m no engineer, but to me my proposals make sense and other things I read here as well.

    1. davidnotcoulthard
      13th July 2012, 14:00

      No, I’d prefer having the FIA limit the space (Volume, for example in litres) of the engine+gearbox+fuel tank+KERS+all sort of other things bay. It’ll be a balancing competition, and it’ll be nice.

  28. I’m not sure that the current emphasis on overtaking is that useful anyway. It seems to be the flavour of the month, with the only factor in how exciting people (are told they should) find the race being the number of overtakes which are made. I cringe every time I hear a team boss talking about the “show” and the “spectacle”. If you want a show, go to the theatre, if you want a spectacle, go to specsavers. People who love racing love all aspects of racing, and trying to artificially enhance any element of it is only to the detriment of the sport as a whole. We don’t need a different winner every race to make the championship exciting. We don’t need every race to be the most incredible race in the history of the sport. F1 has been brilliant for the past decade, with great racing pretty much every season. I don’t think we need gimmicks like DRS, or even KERS (in its current guise, though I do think hybrid technology is the future of racing). If you don’t get excited just by seeing the fastest racing cars on earth being driven by some of the most skilful drivers, around some of the most challenging circuits, then you’re not a motorsports fan.

  29. *At which races should DRS be used?- FTFY

  30. I think that DRS should be used at all circuits however the way in which it is uesd should be changed.

    Get rid of the 1 second rule but keep the DRS zone, or on selected circuits add more than one. Instead of being available when the trailing car is 1 second behind the car in front, allow each driver x number of DRS uses per race. In a 50 lap race allow then to use DRS on 30 of the 50 laps with the driver being able to choose when they use it.

    Do they use all their DRS early in the race to try and build an early lead? Do they use it on their in-lap to try and find clear track to pull into? Do they use it to try and overtake? To tray and prevent a trailing car from overtaking?

    Letting the driver decide when and how to use it would provide another strategic element to the races.

    On circuits where overtaking it traditionally difficult allow each driver more DRS and on overtaking friendly circuits allow them to use it less.

  31. not really in favor of DRS, so chose None. But if its got to stay, i think it should be disabled for all those fast-track races.
    What i also think is tracks like Abu Dhabi and Korea can benefit more from a re-design than DRS, especially Abu Dhabi, which could use less perpendicular corners and hairpins and have more dynamic layout. that is my opinion.

  32. DRS leads to completely contrived racing, I hated the “car behind boost” in video games and I sure as hell hate it here.. None was my vote.. Manipulating the tyres is almost as bad and equivilent to Bernies fake rain solution so that good development goes to waste due to fake randomised conditions..

    I’m not one to complain without offering a solution however so I’ve come up with an alternative..

    Have two sets of races each weekend. One where the drivers battle all out in GoKarts which are designed to have identical performances. The other where they race cars developed by the teams with only a few restrictions and a strictly enforced budget cap.

    The points would be divided across both races each weekend..

    Practice sessions would be limited only to the teams own cars. Qualifying and the race would be reduced and divided between Go Karts and Team cars..

    That way we’d see great racing with the pure talent rising to the top in one race and a furious development race between the teams and great strategy in the other race.

    I’d watch that anyway

    1. I have no idea why by now we don’t have something like Start/Middle/End Season Karting race where all 24 Drives have to participate. That’s going to be a great show and will help young kids to connect with what actually happens in F1, get them interested and off the streets!

  33. DRS should be banned. It’s ridiculous.

  34. DRS should be banned.

    1. I’m so very sorry, double post. Delete this one, please.

  35. DRS itself isn’t the issue. I agree that it is artificial for specified zones and takes away from racing. My thought is that F1 should be about driver skill over all else. If the car is amazing, but drives itself…the drivers talent is minimized. To this, I suggest letting a driver use the DRS *anytime* they want. If they want to try it open on 130R, go for it. If they want to get alongside and try it in the Monaco tunnel, go nuts. This would bring racing back to the fundamental roots of driver talent. If the driver knows his car and can handle using DRS in places that another driver isn’t comfortable with, then you will see more “natural” overtaking.

    1. Completely agree!!!

    2. It makes sense.

    3. @gdenton Tempted to say the same myself but the safety boffins would allow it. Someone who isn’t up to it will go for it and inevitably wall it.

    4. Agree.

      I’m already imagining new Perez vs Maldonado moment :D

  36. I voted to keep it at all tracks.

    The reason is down to what I think could be an ugly situation if you start picking which tracks should and shouldn’t have DRS. Probably not as applicable this year, owing to an extremely competitive grid but if you go back to 2011 it could be very different. Take the RB7 for example, fast through the corners, slow on the straights. That in theory gave other teams at least a chance to catch Vettel with the aid of DRS. If you then remove that advantage you’re reducing another teams shot at success which could be misconstrued as a political move, especially if you ask the teams for their opinion. It might sound far fetched, but a tenth is a tenth in this sport.

    I think the system should stay as far as the mechanics of it are concerned but the application needs reviewing. Limiting it to a specific area makes it predictable. Expand it to more of the circuit where possible and devise a limitation on it’s activation. Turn it into something to get excited about, not sterile.

    1. NONE….

      AS IT IS PRESENTLY BEING USED IT SERVES NO PURPOSE BUT TO GIVE AN UNFAIR ADVANTAGE.

      DRS IS A RIDICULOUS SOLUTION MEANT TO SOLVE ANOTHER KIND OF PROBLEM.

      TIME HAS COME FOR A NEW FORMULA AND A NEW VISION FOR THE FUTURE OF F1.

      WITHOUT THIS NEEDED CHANGE THE SPORT WILL CONTINUE TO DECLINE

  37. I have voted for Aus, Bah, Spain, Mon, GB, Hun, Sing, Jap and Abu Dhabi which seems to be pretty common with other voters as well.

    I personally don’t support a DRS zone in Valencia while other 60% voters think so. Agreed, Valencia gave duds in previous years but I believe that with the closeness of the field and KERS, it will make a decent GP. It’s a track with high tire wear and that spices up even further. It will be a challenge for drivers as to on which straight to use KERS and in what percentage.

    Similarly, Korea and India don’t need DRS. They have long straights to slipstream and with tire wear being an issue, the exit onto the straight makes a difference as well.

    Whereas India has prepared a track in such a way that it can encourage overtaking with it’s huge width on the entry and exit before a straight.

  38. If the (aero) rules stay the same, I’d say the following tracks need DRS zone(s):
    – Melbourne. Just doesn’t have long enough straight to do it otherwise.
    – Bahrain.
    – Catalunya. Must have at this track.
    – Valencia. See above.
    – Nürburgring. The corners leading onto the long-ish back straight are too fast, so a DRS zone “must” be there.
    – Hungaroring. Unless it rains, there’s no way past on this track without DRS.
    – Monza. Say what you want, but the somewhat tactical element that DRS brought to this track was pretty fascinating last year (and the year before that with the F duct).
    – Singapore. Doesn’t have to be as long as last year, nor even at the same place.
    – Suzuka. The ultimate aero track.
    – Abu Dhabi. I’d rather have this off the calendar.

  39. I guess it has already been suggested before, so I’m not boasting about bringing a new idea here, just giving my own opinion.

    First of all I think the on-track action has been great so far this year, and that almost every GP is interesting to follow. So thinks my old dad who follows F1 since the late 60’S.

    But I agree also when people say that DRS gievs an unfair advantage to attacking drivers, and therefore making most of the battles artificial. I also agree that dirty air is artificially reducing chances for any driver who tries to overtake.

    This leaves us with the following question : how to improve overtaking possibilities without giving unfair advantage to the attacker?

    I think the key is that driving must be overall more challenging. It seems that every driver with the right concentration level & set up can make a perfect lap nowadays. I would suggest to make driving more difficult than it is. Here are a few ideas :

    1 – Let kers and DRS available all time. That would allow drivers who feel confident to use it in tricky corners, when following other cars. The most daring would get the better exit and get a chance to overtake or increase its advantage when leading.

    2 – Replace tarmac run-off areas with the surface they have at Paul Ricard, which is abrasive enough to punish any driver that ventures off-track. Combined with point 1, this will advantage drivers with both reliability and skill.

    3- Get rid of the ‘must use both type of tyres in the race’ rule, and encourage tyre suppliers to make tyres that last more than one GP. Not forbid to change tyres, but making it irrelevant strategy-wise. So that drivers will not be afraid of pushing all GP through and locking their tyres attempting to overtake.

    Actually I think everything must be made so that driving get more difficult that it is today, and spare us the “be gentle on the tyres / engine / gearbox” syndrome. It will make us recognise which driver has the best skills and fitness level.

    What is your opinion ?

    1. I am not sure it would get rid of saving tyres, gearboxes, engines etc, as those have been part of the sport right from the onset over a century ago @wilhelm

      But I think that what you propose could work pretty good for racing.

  40. Looking forward a little bit… If a new fan’s first introduction to F1 comes through the new (and awesome looking) F1 Race Stars game… I think nothing would shock them more than to watch their first actual race and find out the DRS and KERS options are actually real things!

  41. I would prefer none but if it is to stick the spanish tracks abu dhabi and hungary are must have DRS zone tracks.

  42. Anyone considered having DRS used like in FR3.5? Where you get seven minutes and thirty seconds of anywhere use?

  43. How about they create variable DRS zones?
    DRS zones that randomly changed their length during the course of the race.

    We would see HRTs getting past the RedBulls… haha

  44. Joey Zyla (@)
    1st January 2013, 2:15

    DRS is silly. The majority of ‘fans’ these days think F1 should be like an arcade game, with an overtake every second. I happily voted ‘none’.

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