What is Formula One 1 - F1? The Rules of Formula One 1 - F1 Explained.

 
Formula One (F1):

"The object of the race is to be the first to cross the finish line after completing a certain number of laps around a track".

The Rules of Formula One 1 - F1 Explained.

There are three parts to any race.

Practice: 

Mostly held on a Friday, practice is where drivers can test their cars on the racetrack. This is valuable to determine how the car will run given the weather and environment and also to get the driver used to the track.



Qualifying:

To determine what position each driver starts in the race, each driver will complete laps of the track on their own. The fastest driver will start the race on the grid in the 1st position, the 2nd fastest in the 2nd position etc. until all the drivers are assigned a position to start the race. This is known as qualifying and is usually held on a Saturday, the day before the actual race.

The Race:

Once qualifying has determined the order where the drivers start, the actual race is usually held on a Sunday. Drivers will do one warm up lap and then line up in the position that they will start as determined by qualifying. Once all the lights go out, the race begins. Drivers have to complete a predetermined number of laps, for a total distance of 305km (or 260 km for Monaco) the driver who crosses the line first after all the laps have been completed wins. Drivers get points for the position that they finish, and the driver with the most points after all the grand prix’s have been contested is crowned the world champion. It’s honestly that simple, but there’s a few other things you’ll need to know about before going to or watching a race. For example.



Track Each:

Grand Prix track is totally different to another, and all of them are contested in a different country. This means that teams and drivers have to prepare and set up their cars for the environment. From the sweltering heat of Abu Dhabi, to the cold and rain of England, to the humid night race of Singapore, and the world’s most famous street race – Monaco. Drivers will usually memorise every turn for every track so that they perform better when they actually race.



Tires/Tyres:

Each team has access to different types of tires. The softer the tyre, the more grip you have, but the quicker they wear out. The harder to tyre, the longer they last but they have less grip. Depending the weather and track conditions determines which tyres the teams should use. Using the wrong tyre at the wrong time could cost you the race, and sometimes worse. 

Pit Stop:

Cars are allowed to go back to their own team’s garage (or pit) to change their tyres or refuel. This is known as a pit stop and teams are so fast at changing 4 tyres and adding fuel that this can be done in about 3 seconds. A team is allowed as many pit stops as they like, but this adds time to your race and could cost you valuable positions.



Penalty:

Should you break one of the rules, a penalty may be issued against you depending on the severity of the rule you broke. This can either be imposed as time added to your total time to complete the race, known as a drive through penalty, docking you starting y positions on the grid to start the race, or more severe penalties such as penalising you for future races, or excluding you from any further grand prix’s. 

Flags:

During a race, marshalls will use flags to indicate things to the drivers. I’m not going to cover single every flag, but the most common are: 

Green Flag – This flag is used to start or restart a race. 

Yellow Flag – This is to tell the driver to slow down due to a hazard or accident. 

Red Flag – This is an instruction for the drivers to either stop or return to the pit lanes due to danger on the track.

Black Flag – This is a penalty issued to a driver who has broken the rules.

Blue Flag – This is an instruction to let the car behind overtake you.

Checkered Flag – This is the famous flag that denotes the end of a race.