F1 101: The ReasonBehind Refuelling Ban

Refuelling the cars during the pitstops was prohibited by the F1 authorities in 2010

In 2010, the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile banned the refuelling of Formula One cars during the pitstops. The ban was passed, and it developed into a permanent rule which is valid to date. Over the decision, the world of Formula One got divided because some people embraced the ban whereas a few others did not like the idea. Nonetheless, the ban remained, and it has been 10 generations. So, why did Formula One ban the refuelling of cars? For those who do not watch Formula One or are new to the Formula One world, here is the reason.

As we all know, entering the pitstop and leaving as quickly as possible provides a superiority to the drivers. Therefore, immense pressure is on the drivers to enter and leave as speedily as possible. For this reason, a driver requires to halt at the exact position so that the pit crew can perform the modifications. Before 2010, the cars had to be refuelled and, frequently; the cars went on fire because of a leakage in the fuel hose. Not to overlook, on many occasions; several F1 drivers left the pitstop with the fuel hose hooked up to the car because of which, the car went on flames and the drivers received severe burn injuries. To minimize the risk factor of the sport and to strengthen the safety of the pit crews, drivers and the cars; F1 banned refuelling of cars.

However, this ban had its advantages and disadvantages. The ban helped the sport become safe and also facilitated the pitstop duration to be below three seconds. Before 2010, an average pitstop used to take around 10 seconds to 16 seconds. However, since the ban on refuelling; most of the pitstops are down to three or four seconds. Moving on to disadvantages, after the ban; the teams filled the tank of the F1 cars to the brim. For this reason, the weight of the cars increased which affected the tyres. Not to forget, the cars started overheating. In recent times, some drivers have supported the return of refuelling during the pitstops. Former racer

RomainGrosjean commented on the issue by saying, “Yes, we want it. Not because we think it’s great for racing but because we need to bring the weight of the car down to help Pirelli. It’s a temporary fix for the car to be 70 kg lighter or 60 kg lighter.”

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