F1 News: FIA Makes Last-Minute Change To Austin GP

The FIA has made some last-minute changes to the Circuit Of The Americas.

In response to ongoing concerns about track limits, the FIA initiated last-minute changes to the Circuit of The Americas ahead of the 2023 United States Grand Prix after Qualifying yesterday. This decision, influenced by driver and team feedback, follows recent controversies in the sport related to similar issues.

Key Takeaways:

• Rising concerns over track limits have persisted, with 51 lap times deleted in the recent Qatar GP and 76 lap times negated during the FP1 session at the Austin GP.
• Max Verstappen's fastest Q3 lap was invalidated after he exceeded track limits at Turn 19, relegating him to sixth on the grid despite narrowly outpacing Ferrari's Charles Leclerc.
• The FIA adjusted track limits at Turns 9, 12, and 19 by widening the white lines, aiming to provide drivers with more leeway.

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The track limits debacle has been a recurring theme this season. After the Qatar Grand Prix saw a notable number of lap times deleted due to track limit violations, the issue intensified during the uncompetitive FP1 session at the Circuit Of The Americas. 

Among the most significant repercussions of this was the disqualification of Max Verstappen's Q3 lap during Grand Prix Qualifying. Having edged out Ferrari's Charles Leclerc by a mere 0.005 seconds, Verstappen's breach of track limits at Turn 19 meant he would start from the sixth position instead of pole.

This scenario pushed track limits to be a focal point during the Friday night drivers’ briefing. Consequently, the FIA, aiming to mitigate such contentious incidents, decided to redefine track boundaries at three crucial corners. The FIA elaborated:

“Following discussion with the teams and drivers yesterday we have widened the white line on the outside at Turns 9, 12 and 19 - this is to give the drivers a bit of extra margin at these corners.” 

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While these modifications might seem like a solution, they haven't been devoid of scrutiny. Critics argue that the FIA is yielding to pressures from racing entities. However, insiders believe that these changes are a short-term resolution to avoid more controversies about track limits. This notion is further cemented as the FIA's data system undergoes refinements to respond more swiftly to marginal track limit violations.