For the Rookies
Although many of you will be familiar with names such as Sir Lewis Hamilton and recognise the famous fiery red of a Ferrari, there are many more details to Formula One. Through social media and Drive to Survive, there’s been a lot more attention towards F1 in recent seasons. However, there is specific language used by drivers, commentators and teams to describe events on and off track that may not familiar to the casual viewer. For a rookie this can be daunting…
So here we are to save the day! Here is a rundown on some of the most important F1 lingo and phrases that you will come into contact with whilst enjoying a race weekend.
Apex: The middle point of a corner where drivers aim to position the front end of the car.
Dirty Air: When the air coming over a car causes a negative effect on the driver behind. This can make over taking more difficult since there is less of a slip stream.
Slip Stream: When closely following another driver, the car behind can become advantaged as there is a reduced impact of drag. This is particularly helpful during overtakes as it can help build up enough momentum to slip out and get in front.
Pit/Box: A designated area near the track where drivers come in to change their tyres or carry out other alterations on the car. Many race engineers have been heard saying “Box, Box” which is an instruction for their driver to come into the pits. It is vital that during the race teams try to have a short pit stop to reduce the likelihood of them losing track position.
Rookie: A new driver on the Formula 1 grid.
Cockpit: The drivers home, this is the area in the car where they sit.
Drag: The resistance of the car against the air around it.
Over Steering: The rear end of the car does not turn the way the driver wants it to, pushing it towards the front end, as if to spin the car round. This can be corrected by drivers realigning the front of the car.
Under Steering: When the front of the car goes wider around a corner rather than steering into the apex.
Drag Reduction System (DRS): Opening of the rear wing of the car allows the driver, aiming for the overtake, to do so with some ease. DRS is only activated when the drivers are within one second of each other in the DRS zones on track.
Formation Lap: Drivers do one lap around the track to get into their places based on where they finished in qualifying. This is to warm up the tyres and breaks.
Locking Up: When you see a dramatic gust of smoke during a driver braking into a corner, it is most likely due to a lock up. This means that a tyre has stopped moving which can cause a flat spot on the tyre, leading to further discomfort and issues for drivers.
Pole: Every drivers goal on Saturday is pole position in qualifying. This means the driver is placed at the front of the grid at the start of Sunday's race, giving them a potential advantage and a lot less traffic to be concerned about.
Retiring: Cars retiring is quite common across races. Many leave the race due to a collision or failure of the car which leaves them unable to continue.
Safety Car: When an incident happens that requires the drivers to slow down their pace, a safety car will be launched to run in front of the drivers in order to maintain speed.
Sectors: Each race track is divided up into 3 sections. This can highlight how fast drivers are going through each section of the grid, for example, where they gain or lose lap time.
So there it is… a round up of some common words and phrases that will be helpful for any new and upcoming Formula One fan!
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