Lewis Hamilton, left, will get less information from his Mercedes-GP race engineer Pete Bonnington from now on in races. Clive Mason / Getty Images
Lewis Hamilton, left, will get less information from his Mercedes-GP race engineer Pete Bonnington from now on in races. Clive Mason / Getty Images

Radio silence to add new dimension to the Formula One show



The first five stagings of the Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix have been full of great racing, but one of the most memorable moments in the event’s history came in 2012, during an incident that did not transpire on the track, but over the pit-radio airwaves.

To set the scene, Kimi Raikkonen had just moved into first place at Yas Marina Circuit when his race engineer began channeling information on the situation going on behind him.

It went like this:

Lotus engineer: “OK, Kimi, the next car behind you is Alonso. Alonso five seconds behind you. I will keep you updated on the gap. I will keep you updated on the pace.”

Raikkonen: “Just leave me alone, I know what I’m doing!”

Later in the race, during a safety-car exchange, there was another exchange.

Lotus engineer: “We need to keep working all four tyres please. Keep working ...”

Raikkonen: “Yes, yes, yes, I’m doing all of that. You don’t have to remind me every 10 seconds.”

The incident created much mirth among Formula One fans as the exasperated Finn went on to win, but thanks to a new ruling from the FIA, motorsport’s ruling body, on the use of pit radios, those types of conversations will all but disappear, starting with this weekend’s Singapore Grand Prix meeting.

Concerned that drivers were getting too much information over the pit wall, FIA has banned a number of topics from being discussed over the pit radio.

They have done this by emphasising Rule 20.1 of the F1 bylaws, which states, “The driver must drive the car alone and unaided.”

No longer can a driver ask about where he is losing time to a rival, how much fuel is left in their car, or discuss various technical changes and alterations to the car’s set-up during the race.

The idea, on paper, is to make the driver work harder and take more responsibility for his own car and performance.

At Monaco, in May, Nico Rosberg was warned from the pit wall by the Mercedes-GP team that he would not make it to the end of the race unless he went into fuel-saving mode for a number of laps.

Each car starts a race with 100kgs of fuel which they must make last the distance.

Now he will have to work it out himself from within the car.

Number crunching, while driving at speeds close to 300 kilometres per hour, racing against other cars, does not sound easy, does it?

In the FIA’s view, and quite rightly so, tough.

This is F1, the top echelon of motorsport, and it should be difficult. An immediate consequence for drivers is that they will likely have to spend even more time eyeing telemetry readings.

In practice this season, the Mercedes-GP pair of Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton have regularly asked, via radio, where they are losing time to each other, and where the other is gaining time.

In the second practice session at the Italian Grand Prix earlier this month, Rosberg asked over the radio, “driving advice?” as he sought information on where he could find time, and was told to take a higher gear through part of the track.

Now such interaction is banned and Rosberg would either have to go back to the pits and get out of his car, or wait till the end of the session for such guidance.

A likely consequence is that a struggling driver will spend more time in the pits than on the track trying to drive around a problem, instead talking to his mechanics in his garage, which he is still allowed to do.

Only time will tell what impact this will have on racing. It may cause more reliability issues, if items such as batteries and gearboxes are not dealt with correctly.

A car or two might splutter to a halt, out of fuel, before the end of the year, too.

Radio discussion is not completely banned, of course. A driver can still be told of his performance, just not in comparison to another driver. The driver may be made aware of any damage by his crew, and tyre choices can be addressed via radio.

There may be some confusion, since it is not a blanket ban, and it would not be a surprise if there is an accidental infringement in Singapore, which would lead to a time penalty for the driver. But anything that adds another element of unpredictability while equally challenging the drivers is not a bad thing.

It is hard to know how it will affect the championship rivals at Mercedes. As TV viewers have overheard in many pit radio excerpts used in the F1 broadcasts this year during races, both have used their radios regularly.

Hamilton has a reputation for overreliance on radio instructions, unfair in retrospect, since it is based on his inexperience during his rookie year in 2007, when he allowed McLaren-Mercedes chiefs to keep him out on track in China on bald tyres, causing him to slide into a gravel trap when he inevitably found he had no grip.

But he has probably the more natural raw pace compared to Rosberg, and the German may find it harder to perfect his race set-ups quickly and without help in practice.

Sunday’s race will tell the initial story of who this will hurt. Given their car’s pace advantage, this should be another weekend of Mercedes dominance, with Rosberg looking to extend his 22-point lead over Hamilton in the standings with six races of the season to go.

The tight nature of the street circuit at Marina Bay should allow Red Bull Racing to be closer than usual to the pace, but Daniel Ricciardo and Sebastian Vettel will do well to get within a half-second of the Mercedes cars in qualifying, unless the German team have more reliability issues.

gcaygill@thenational.ae

Follow our sports coverage on Twitter @SprtNationalUAE

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Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
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Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
 
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Tips on buying property during a pandemic

Islay Robinson, group chief executive of mortgage broker Enness Global, offers his advice on buying property in today's market.

While many have been quick to call a market collapse, this simply isn’t what we’re seeing on the ground. Many pockets of the global property market, including London and the UAE, continue to be compelling locations to invest in real estate.

While an air of uncertainty remains, the outlook is far better than anyone could have predicted. However, it is still important to consider the wider threat posed by Covid-19 when buying bricks and mortar. 

Anything with outside space, gardens and private entrances is a must and these property features will see your investment keep its value should the pandemic drag on. In contrast, flats and particularly high-rise developments are falling in popularity and investors should avoid them at all costs.

Attractive investment property can be hard to find amid strong demand and heightened buyer activity. When you do find one, be prepared to move hard and fast to secure it. If you have your finances in order, this shouldn’t be an issue.

Lenders continue to lend and rates remain at an all-time low, so utilise this. There is no point in tying up cash when you can keep this liquidity to maximise other opportunities. 

Keep your head and, as always when investing, take the long-term view. External factors such as coronavirus or Brexit will present challenges in the short-term, but the long-term outlook remains strong. 

Finally, keep an eye on your currency. Whenever currency fluctuations favour foreign buyers, you can bet that demand will increase, as they act to secure what is essentially a discounted property.

Andor
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Brief scores:

Toss: South Africa, chose to field

Pakistan: 177 & 294

South Africa: 431 & 43-1

Man of the Match: Faf du Plessis (South Africa)

Series: South Africa lead three-match series 2-0

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Airev
Started: September 2023
Founder: Muhammad Khalid
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: Generative AI
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Core42
Current number of staff: 47
 

Lampedusa: Gateway to Europe
Pietro Bartolo and Lidia Tilotta
Quercus

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Timeline

1947
Ferrari’s road-car company is formed and its first badged car, the 125 S, rolls off the assembly line

1962
250 GTO is unveiled

1969
Fiat becomes a Ferrari shareholder, acquiring 50 per cent of the company

1972
The Fiorano circuit, Ferrari’s racetrack for development and testing, opens

1976
First automatic Ferrari, the 400 Automatic, is made

1987
F40 launched

1988
Enzo Ferrari dies; Fiat expands its stake in the company to 90 per cent

2002
The Enzo model is announced

2010
Ferrari World opens in Abu Dhabi

2011
First four-wheel drive Ferrari, the FF, is unveiled

2013
LaFerrari, the first Ferrari hybrid, arrives

2014
Fiat Chrysler announces the split of Ferrari from the parent company

2015
Ferrari launches on Wall Street

2017
812 Superfast unveiled; Ferrari celebrates its 70th anniversary

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The biog

Name: Sari Al Zubaidi

Occupation: co-founder of Cafe di Rosati

Age: 42

Marital status: single

Favourite drink: drip coffee V60

Favourite destination: Bali, Indonesia 

Favourite book: 100 Years of Solitude 

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets

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