What does interval mean in F1? Real meaning of term explained

F1 is a technical sport with many unique terms and acronyms, including the term "interval". During a race or practice session, the leaderboard will display a driver's lap time or the word "interval" next to the name of the driver in pole position. The numbers listed next to the other drivers' names indicate the gap between them and the leader, with a plus sign indicating how many seconds behind they are.

For instance, if a driver is listed as +1.348, they are 1.348 seconds behind the driver in front of them. The interval is an essential measure in F1, and if it is less than +1.000, drivers can use DRS to gain a speed boost and attempt to overtake the car in front of them.

The Graphic on the left shows the interval times

The leaderboard will also show a separate statistic under the heading "leader," which provides cumulative timings for every other driver in relation to the driver in pole position. Therefore, if the word "leader" appears next to the driver in pole position, the times given for every other driver will indicate how far behind they are from the leader, while the "interval" measures the gap between the drivers directly ahead of them.

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The new F1 season sees new competitors while the old behemoths fall

With the 2023 season opener in Bahrain on the books, the tide in the sport looks set to change. Aston Martin emerged as a new competitor to the front runners Red Bull and Ferrari, while Mercedes showed a dip in performances yet again this year.

Fernando Alonso is back and the oldest guy on the grid managed to secure his 99th career podium finish. McLaren are still unable to progress past midfield, while Haas showed some advances in their times as compared to last year.

The Red Bull domination looks set to continue this season with Max Verstappen cruising to his first victory and teammate Sergio Perez bringing up the rear in the Red Bull 1-2.

Charles Leclerc and Ferrari still have mechanical issues they need to fix. The issues cost them the title last year and they will be hoping to put up a better challenge this year. Leclerc was in third place and was on pace for a podium finish at the 2023 F1 Bahrain GP when he suffered a power failure and his car had to be retired.

With the new season on us, it will be interesting to see which team takes the crown and which team suffers defeat.