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F1 DRS Rules 2022, Meaning, What Is It, Detection Zone And How Many Times Can It Be Enabled [Explained]

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2 years ago

July 4, 2022

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F1 DRS Rules 2022, Meaning, What Is It, Detection Zone And How Many Times Can It Be Enabled Explained

In Formula One, how do drivers regulate the DRS? Is the system fully automated? Who controls the system, and when are drivers prohibited from utilising it? Know the DRS rules in F1 2022

DRS, which was originally intended as a band-aid to enhance overtaking, has now been a component of F1 since the 2011 season.

Explained F1 DRS Rules 2022, Meaning, What Is It, Detection Zone And How Many Times Can It Be Enabled By A Driver

The Drag Reduction System is a tiny flap in the rear wing that expands to reduce drag and improve maximum speed, perhaps allowing the driver to try an overtake. It has been chastised for allowing easy ‘DRS overtakes,’ in which one vehicle smashes past another long before the braking zone, but its use has generally enhanced racing.

How do drivers use DRS in Formula One, and when is it prohibited by the FIA?

IN F1, HOW IS DRS CONTROLLED?

Drivers were allowed to deploy DRS wherever they wished around a circuit in practise or qualifying during the first two seasons of DRS in F1, 2011 and 2012.

During the race, they were only permitted to use it in the approved DRS zones. However, starting 2013, the rules were amended such that a vehicle can only utilise the DRS in the zones while on track.

Drivers may still use it freely in practise and qualifying, but to use it in the race, they must be within one second of the vehicle ahead through the DRS detection zone, which is normally a few bends before the activation zone.

F1 drivers simply open the flap by pressing a button on the steering wheel. They will hear a beep in their ear when the technology becomes available. To close it, they may either use the brakes or, as Lewis Hamilton likes, manually close it.

WHEN THEY ARE NOT ALLOWED TO USE IT?

Drivers are allowed to employ the DRS as they see appropriate in dry circumstances. When it is wet and raining, though, drivers may be prohibited from utilising it.

The FIA turned off DRS for the 2022 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix and prohibited drivers from using it until the track had dried sufficiently.

When the track has dried, the FIA will activate the system if it deems the conditions are safe. The DRS was turned off for the first part of the 2019 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

The FIA, which ultimately controls the usage of DRS in F1, turned it off after a server outage caused the connection with the vehicles to be lost. It was activated on the 18th lap, much to the pleasure of Valtteri Bottas – who had struggled to start the race.