Right now, our favorite F1 drivers (and their respective teams) are chilling after racing for six months. In fact, they can all enjoy a short break for the next few weeks, then return to comfort, but ready to race for Belgium. Now, if you’re fairly new to Formula 1, especially if you’re one of those shiny new fans thanks to the Netflix series Drive to survive, then the concept of the ‘Summer Shutdown’ series might put you off. But don’t worry, Andrew Shovlin, Mercedes-Benz AMG Petronas F1 Team Engineer, explains to us.
In a tweet from the Mercedes team, Shovlin, or “Shov” takes viewers through why it’s closed for the summer and it’s not just for a break from traveling around the world for six months. It’s actually mandatory in the rules.
The Regulations requires every F1 team to stop working for 14 consecutive days. All development, analysis – really Any work done on the vehicle must be stopped, unless it is approved by the FIA in advance. Teams and drivers are even banned from reading emails. However, groups can do maintenance to prepare for another 50 weeks racing ahead.
That’s a lot of hands and let everyone catch up with themselves for a bit. I like to equate it with working on a difficult project where you can’t find a solution. Take a break from time to time, take a break from work to relax, and when you come back, you’ve had a breakthrough.
Some teams came back in better form after the break. Some turn into completely different teams (in a bad way). But one thing is for sure, the race will still go well. Maybe except for Ferrari.
