After the meeting between the FIA, Formula 1 organization, and the teams, held on Monday (20), the category saw a change in the qualifying session rules, and Kimi Antonelli did not hide his relief with the decision. The Mercedes driver stated that the ‘trick’ used by his team, now banned by the FIA, was not safe, especially after a tense experience at the Japanese GP.
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The tactic was also reportedly used by Red Bull Racing, which found a way to avoid the gradual reduction of energy delivery when crossing the timing line. To do this, teams activated an emergency mode that immediately shut down the MGU-K, causing a ‘lock’ of the power unit for about a minute.
Although the strategy was not practical during the race, it could be used on cool-down laps during qualifying sessions. However, Antonelli ended up facing difficulties after using the feature, becoming practically defenseless on a critical section of the Suzuka circuit.
The FIA informed the teams in writing that the ‘continuous offset’ function of the software should only be used in emergency situations, as originally intended. With this, the entity decided to prohibit the use of the feature as a way to gain performance in qualifying sessions.
The Mercedes driver stated that the feeling when using the feature was not positive: “Obviously, it wasn’t the best feeling. Of course, we try to extract every bit of performance, but that can bring problems or unexpected situations,” he said.
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Antonelli also reported that he faced a particularly tense moment when he ran out of electrical power during the cool-down lap in Suzuka. According to him, the car stopped responding to commands, which increased concern on a narrow, high-speed section.
“I knew this could happen, but I hadn’t really experienced it until Melbourne and Suzuka. First of all, it’s not very safe, especially in Suzuka. I was like an easy target in the ‘S’, knowing that the track isn’t very wide and there isn’t much space,” he added.
Antonelli also described the situation as stressful, highlighting the lack of control over the car: “It was quite stressful, not being able to do anything, because the car wasn’t responding to any commands. I was just going very slowly on the track. It was a tense moment,” concluded the young Italian driver.
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