3 key changes made by the FIA for the second half of 2024 F1 season

Though the F1 circus is on a three-week break for the summers, the governing body of the sport has not stopped improving the spectacle for the future. On July 31, the FIA brought a few important changes to the technical and sporting regulations for the single-seater motorsport series.

Some of these changes were triggered after certain incidents that took place at the 2024 F1 Chinese GP, while others were observed by the governing body and other teams in general.

Here are the three major rule changes that FIA has implemented for the rest of the 2024 F1 season.

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FIA made three major technical and sporting rule changes for the remainder of the 2024 F1 season

#1 Asymmetrical braking system is forbidden

The asymmetrical braking system is a term used by the FIA for F1 cars using different brake pad pressures on the left and right-hand sides to slow the car down. This could be used on certain tracks to gain an advantage and make the car more stable.

This loophole was recently closed and the FIA clearly stated that the brake pad pressures need to be the same on both sides of the car. They added that if any braking system from an F1 team is intentionally asymmetrical, they could be penalized. The last line about asymmetrical braking being forbidden was the main change brought by the governing body in Article 11.1.2.

“The brake system must be designed so that within each circuit, the forces applied to the brake pads are the same magnitude and act as opposing pairs on a given brake disc. Any system or mechanism which can produce systematically or intentionally, asymmetric braking torques for a given axle is forbidden,” Article 11.1.2 states.

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#2 Retiring from qualifying if a car stops

During the 2024 F1 Chinese GP qualifying session, Carlos Sainz's Ferarri spun and stopped on the track. The session was red flagged and soon the Spaniard was able to start the car and take it back to the pits. The SF-24 was fixed and Sainz entered Q3 and secured P7.

Later on, Aston Martin protested against the qualifying results and claimed that Sainz and Ferrari breached Article 39.6 that states if a car stops on track, it must retire from the race.

This article was recently updated with a few additions that if an F1 car stops anywhere on the track apart from the pit lane and requires physical assistance, then that car cannot rejoin the qualifying session.

"Any driver whose car stops in any area other than the pitlane during the qualifying session or the sprint qualifying session and receives physical assistance will not be permitted to take any further part in that session," Article 39.6 states.

It is worth noting that even with the previous iteration of the rule, Carlos Sainz would have not received a penalty since he managed to start the car and move it himself.

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#3 Penalty carry over to the next Grand Prix

Another issue regarding penalty carryovers was highlighted during the Chinese GP. In the race, Fernando Alonso collided with Carlos Sainz while performing an audacious move in Turn 9.

This caused major damage to Alonso's car, forcing the two-time F1 world champion to retire. By retiring, he evaded a time penalty imposed on him for the collision. The penalty was not carried over to the next Grand Prix.

This triggered a change in the sporting regulation Article 54.3, which now states that any driver who receives a five or ten-second penalty during a sprint or Grand Prix but is not classified in that session, will have to serve the penalty in the next race.

Similarly, if any driver who receives a drive-through or a ten-second stop-and-go penalty retires from the sprint or Grand Prix, he will also have to serve the penalty in the next race.

"If any of [the] penalties above are imposed upon a driver, and that driver is unable to serve the penalty due to being unclassified in the sprint session or the race in the case of a) or b) or due to retirement from the sprint session or the race in the case of c) or d), the stewards may impose a grid place penalty on the driver at their next race," Article 54.3 states.