New weekend format for FIA F2 and F3 announced
The FIA Formula 2 Championship is pleased to announce the new weekend format and changes to the sporting regulations for 2021, which have been approved by the World Motor Sport Council. This follows an earlier announcement in which the cost-cutting measures that included Formula 2 racing on separate weekends from Formula 3 were presented.
As previously announced, from 2021, each F2 event will comprise three races instead of two which means that the weekend format had to be revised.
WEEKEND FORMAT
There will be no changes to the Friday sessions, with one Free Practice session of 45 minutes and one Qualifying session of 30 minutes.
Two sprint races will take place on Saturday and will both consist of 120 kilometers or 45 minutes, whichever comes first. *
The Feature Race will now take place on Sunday morning ahead of the Formula 1 Grand Prix. It will be still be one hour long or 170 kilometers * (whichever comes first) and will keep a compulsory pit stop, in which all four tires must be changed. Unless the driver has used wet-weather tires during the Feature Race, they must use at least one set of each specification of dry-weather tires during the Feature Race.
A timetable will be issued ahead of every round to determine timings of each session.
* Race distance for Monaco and Sochi will be defined closer to the events.
STARTING GRIDS
With three races and only one Qualifying session taking place per event, the results of the Friday’s final classification of the Qualifying session will determine the starting grid for the Sunday Feature Race.
The starting grid of Saturday’s Sprint Race 1 will be determined by reversing the top 10 finishers of Friday’s Qualifying session results.
Lastly, the starting grid of Saturday’s Sprint Race 2 will be determined by reversing the top 10 finishers of Sprint Race 1.
POINTS ATTRIBUTION
The driver who takes pole position following the final classification of Friday’s Qualifying session will be awarded with four points, as is already the case.
Sprint Race 1 and Sprint Race 2’s top eight finishers will be awarded points (15, 12, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2, 1) while the Top ten finishers of the Feature Race will score (25, 18, 15, 12, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2, 1).
Two points will be awarded to the driver who sets the fastest lap in each race. Any driver who is not classified in the top ten positions at the end of the race will not be eligible for points awarded for fastest lap.
The maximum of points that a driver can score over a race weekend has been increased from 48 to 65.
TIRE ALLOCATION
The new sporting regulations state that each driver will be now allocated six sets of dry-weather tires per weekend instead of five. They will have four “prime” specification sets (one more than currently) and two of the “option” specification. Each driver will also be provided with three sets of wet-weather tires.
FIA Formula 2 CEO Bruno Michel commented: “I am pleased to reveal the changes to our sporting regulations which have been approved by the World Motor Sport Council.
“It’s fantastic to be able to move the Feature Race to Sunday which is the day of the Formula 1 Grand Prix. It will enhance the show for the fans and will make it even more special.
“Having two reverse grids on Saturday will spice up the championship even further. We have seen already how entertaining these races are. It should also allow more drivers to showcase their skills in front of the Formula 1 paddock and the rest of the world.”
Formula 3
The FIA Formula 3 Championship is pleased to reveal the new weekend format and changes to the sporting regulations for 2021, which have been approved by the World Motor Sport Council. This follows an earlier announcement in which the cost cutting measures that included Formula 3 racing on separate weekends from Formula 2 were presented.
As previously announced, from 2021, each F3 event will comprise three races instead of two, which means that the weekend format had to be revised.
WEEKEND FORMAT
There will be no changes on Friday, with one Free Practice session of 45 minutes and one Qualifying session of 30 minutes.
Two races will take place on Saturday (Race 1 and Race 2) whilst Race 3 will occur on Sunday morning ahead of the Formula 1 Grand Prix. All three races will be forty minutes long.
A timetable will be issued before every round to determine the timing of each session.
STARTING GRIDS
With three races and only one Qualifying session over the weekend, it has been decided that the final classification of Friday’s Qualifying session will determine the starting grid for Sunday’s Race 3.
The starting grid of Saturday’s Race 1 will be determined by reversing the top 12 finishers of Friday’s Qualifying session.
Finally, the starting grid of Race 2 will be determined by reversing the top 12 finishers of Saturday’s Race 1.
POINTS ATTRIBUTION
As it is currently the case, the driver who takes pole position following the final classification of Friday’s Qualifying session will be awarded four points.
Since the Race 1 and Race 2 starting grids are determined by reversing part of earlier classifications, it has been decided that there will be fewer points on offer in both events for the Top 10 finishers (15, 12, 10, 8, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1).
The top ten classified drivers of Race 3 will then be awarded more points (25, 18, 15, 12, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2, 1).
Two points will be awarded to the driver who sets the fastest lap in each race. Any driver who is not classified in the top ten positions at the end of the race will not be eligible for fastest lap points.
The maximum number of points that a driver can score over a race weekend has been increased from 48 to 65.
TIRE ALLOCATION
From 2021, each driver will have five sets of dry-weather tires (one more than previously) and two sets of wet-weather tires available at each event.
FIA Formula 3 CEO Bruno Michel said: “I am pleased to reveal the changes to our sporting regulations which have been approved by the World Motor Sport Council.
“Race 3 will take place on Sunday which is the day of the Formula 1 Grand Prix.
As its starting grid will be determined by the final classification of Qualifying, we decided as in the past to award more points to the Top 10 finishers.
“Having two reverse grids on Saturday will really spice up the championship and I am sure it will increase even further the entertainment on track. On top of that, it will give more drivers the opportunity to display their talent in front of the Formula 1 community.”