F1 News, Reports and Race Results

Team radio ban lifted after race start

The F1 Strategy Group has agreed to ease the current radio restrictions during races in order to improve content for fans.

The radio restrictions were only tweaked ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix, with drivers having to pit immediately if told of a problem with their car, while teams could say whatever they wished to the driver when the car is in the pit lane.

However, the latest Strategy Group meeting in Geneva - involving Jean Todt, Bernie Ecclestone and the top six teams from last year’s constructors’ championship - agreed to relax the regulations, with teams no longer limited in what they can tell their drivers after the start of the race.

“At the request of the Teams and Commercial Rights Holder, the FIA has agreed to adopt a more liberal approach to the interpretations of Article 27.1 (that a driver must drive the car “alone and unaided”),” the FIA confirmed.

“With the exception of the period between the start of the formation lap and the start of the race, there will be no limitations on messages teams send to their drivers either by radio or pit board.

“This approach is aimed at providing improved content for fans and spectators, as teams will now be required to provide the Commercial Rights Holder with unrestricted access to their radio messages at all times that their cars are out of the garage.”

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.