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F1 Bahrain GP: Going faster won’t deliver better racing - Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton has urged F1 not to pursue plans to simply make Formula 1 faster with its revised 2017 regulations, saying lapping quicker 'won't deliver better racing'.

The three-time F1 world champion has often spoken of his desire to make the cars harder to drive and less reliant of aero, and has expressed his concern that the plans for the revised 2017 regulations could move further from this objective.

As it stands, the regulations - which are still in discussion - have been drafted with the intention of making the cars more aggressive and up to five seconds a lap faster with tweaks to the aero package and tyre construction, though Pirelli has expressed concerns this will be difficult to attain.

Coming in the wake of the GPDA statement bemoaning the way F1 is currently managed, Hamilton - whilst admitting it isn't up to the drivers to come up with ideas - is concerned by the sport's potential direction saying the current draft will just see drivers lapping faster and won't improve the spectacle.

"There's been a lot of talk about the rules and whether the drivers should be more involved in decision making," the Mercedes driver said.

"It's not our job to come up with ideas and we all have different opinions anyway. But personally, I think we need more mechanical grip and less aero wake coming off the back of the cars so we can get close and overtake.

"Give us five seconds' worth of lap time from aero and nothing will change - we'll just be driving faster. I speak as somebody who loves this sport and loves racing. I don't have all the answers - but I know that the changes we're making won't deliver better racing."

Hamilton has been increasingly critical about F1's future direction, claiming he won't race with the halo cockpit protection device that could make its competitive debut as early as 2017.

Zdroj: crash.net