The forecast for the weekend had already warned that the climate may have an effect on the racing program, particularly with the rain on Saturday.
The SON He already anticipated potential disruptions by advancing the first F3 race to Friday afternoon as an alternative of Saturday morning, permitting Dennis Hauger to clinch the title in a dry and uninterrupted race.
And, already on Saturday morning, the first Method 2 race had to be postponed, which led everybody to assume: what about Method 1?
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FP3, the final free follow session of the Russian GP, which ought to have been performed at 12:00 pm native time, was canceled. And the qualification needs to be at 3:00 p.m. …
The FIA Race Director, Michael Masi, spoke this Saturday morning about the climate scenario and stated that there might be a window in the afternoon in which circumstances would enhance.
“The process for in the present day will likely be that we aspire to do all the classes, have every little thing prepared from an operational perspective after which choose the circumstances always,” Masi stated.
“We’ve got what now we have seen in the forecasts is that we are going to have this degree of rain till roughly 1:30 pm to 2:00 pm. After which it decreases throughout the afternoon. “
“So the precedence in the present day is clearly Method 1 qualifying in the afternoon.”
Only a month after the catastrophe of Spa irritating the paddock and followers, F1 has to be prepared to react in Sochi. And right here’s the way you can deal with any doable delay or cancellation in Sochi in the present day:
1) Go the classification to Sunday
Qualifying on Sunday has been a useful resource that F1 has used greater than as soon as when Saturday’s exercise has come to a halt, one thing that has occurred in Japan thrice in the final 20 years.
The final qualifying session on Sunday morning befell in 2019, when a hurricane led the FIA to droop Saturday’s day the day earlier than, giving groups and drivers the alternative to keep secure in motels and keep away from spend a day misplaced on the monitor.
The hurricane finally veered off track, leaving Suzuka largely undamaged, and qualifying might be contested on Sunday morning underneath vivid blue skies earlier than the race just a few hours later.
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If qualifying couldn’t be contested in the present day in Sochi, shifting the session to Sunday morning wouldn’t be an issue for F1, assuming there may be adequate rain-free time earlier than the race.
There are numerous precedents for doing so, and whereas it could trigger a readjustment of the Method 2 and Method Three races which are additionally on Sunday, it’s a state of affairs for which the paddock is ready.
“If qualifying can’t be held in the present day, as now we have seen just a few instances in the previous, then we are going to qualify on Sunday morning,” Masi stated.
Esteban Ocon, Alpine A521, Pierre Gasly, AlphaTauri AT02
Picture by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Photos
2) Use Friday’s FP2 outcomes to resolve the grid
But when the rain continued till Sunday morning and compelled to droop qualifying altogether, it’s doable that the outcomes of the second free follow session will find yourself forming the grid of the race.
And though that useful resource has not been used, the FIA confirmed in 2019 that it could resort to that choice at Suzuka if qualifying couldn’t be carried out at any time.
The stewards introduced on Friday of that Suzuka weekend that if qualifying couldn’t proceed, they’d “train their authority underneath Article 11.9.3.b of the Worldwide Sporting Code and order that the grid for the Japanese Grand Prix be established in primarily based on the agenda from the second follow session, making use of sanctions as obligatory. “
What’s extra:
It’s one thing that the FIA doesn’t appear to be appreciating, as now we have not heard the same assertion to date this weekend. However to the Pink Bull sporting director, Jonathan Wheatley, was heard on the radio of the SON at the starting of FP2 discussing the climate scenario and the choice of that session forming the grid.
In that case, Valtteri Bottas would begin Sunday’s race from pole place forward of Lewis Hamilton after the Mercedes drivers led Friday’s FP2. Pierre Gasly would begin third with AlphaTauri, with Lando Norris fourth.
Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen would have to serve their engine change penalties, which means they’d begin the race from the again of the grid as deliberate.
Yuki Tsunoda, AlphaTauri AT02
Picture by: Charles Coates / Motorsport Photos
3) Discover one other time on Saturday the place you can qualify
F1 followers have been pissed off by continued rain delays and updates (each 15-20 minutes) on the climate in Spa a month in the past, however we could expertise the same story in qualifying on Saturday in Russia.
Nonetheless He defined that the FIA may begin the session and instantly elevate the crimson flag to let the clock tick if it seems there could also be a window to race in, or the session might be canceled altogether.
Not like follow qualifying can be delayed and delayed for a very long time, however the massive issue that may resolve that will likely be the gentle degree in Sochi, particularly made worse by unhealthy climate.
“The figuring out issue this afternoon will likely be the gentle,” Masi admitted. “Sundown is round 6:15 PM (native time), however with climate circumstances like this, clearly the gentle goes down a lot earlier. So in the end that will likely be our cutoff level.”
Gallery: Pictures from the Method 1 weekend in Sochi
Click on on the arrows to scroll via the photos
Carlos Sainz Jr., Ferrari SF21 
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Foto de: Charles Coates / Motorsport Photos
Daniel Ricciardo, McLaren MCL35M 
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Picture by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Photos
Daniel Ricciardo, McLaren MCL35M 
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Foto de: Charles Coates / Motorsport Photos
Lance Stroll, Aston Martin AMR21 
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Foto de: Charles Coates / Motorsport Photos
Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes 
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Foto de: Steve Etherington / Motorsport Photos
Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes 
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Foto de: Steve Etherington / Motorsport Photos
Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes 
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Foto de: Steve Etherington / Motorsport Photos
Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes W12 
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Foto de: Steve Etherington / Motorsport Photos
Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes W12 
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Foto de: Charles Coates / Motorsport Photos
Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes W12 
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Foto de: Charles Coates / Motorsport Photos
Mechanics with Sebastian Vettel, Aston Martin AMR21, in the pit lane 
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Picture by: Glenn Dunbar / Motorsport Photos
Nikita Mazepin, Haas VF-21 
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Foto de: Charles Coates / Motorsport Photos
Nikita Mazepin, Haas VF-21, on the scale 
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Foto de: Charles Coates / Motorsport Photos
Pierre Gasly, AlphaTauri AT02 
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Foto de: Charles Coates / Motorsport Photos
Sebastian Vettel, Aston Martin 
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Picture by: Glenn Dunbar / Motorsport Photos
Sebastian Vettel, Aston Martin 
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Picture by: Glenn Dunbar / Motorsport Photos
Sebastian Vettel, Aston Martin AMR21 
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Foto de: Charles Coates / Motorsport Photos
Sebastian Vettel, Aston Martin AMR21 
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Foto de: Charles Coates / Motorsport Photos
Sergio Pérez, Pink Bull Racing RB16B 
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Foto de: Charles Coates / Motorsport Photos
Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes 
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Foto de: Steve Etherington / Motorsport Photos
Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes W12 
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Foto de: Steve Etherington / Motorsport Photos
Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes W12, in the pits 
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Foto de: Steve Etherington / Motorsport Photos
Yuki Tsunoda, AlphaTauri AT02 
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Picture by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Photos
Yuki Tsunoda, AlphaTauri AT02 
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Foto de: Charles Coates / Motorsport Photos
Sebastian Vettel, Aston Martin AMR21 
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Foto de: Charles Coates / Motorsport Photos
Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes 
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Foto de: Steve Etherington / Motorsport Photos
Antonio Giovinazzi, Alfa Romeo Racing C41 
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Foto de: Charles Coates / Motorsport Photos
Carlos Sainz Jr., Ferrari SF21 
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Foto de: Charles Coates / Motorsport Photos
Lance Stroll, Aston Martin AMR21 
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Foto de: Charles Coates / Motorsport Photos
Max Verstappen, Pink Bull Racing RB16B 
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Foto de: Charles Coates / Motorsport Photos
Mick Schumacher, Haas VF-21 
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Foto de: Charles Coates / Motorsport Photos
Tires in the Mercedes storage 
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Foto de: Steve Etherington / Motorsport Photos
Pierre Gasly, AlphaTauri AT02 
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Foto de: Charles Coates / Motorsport Photos
Sebastian Vettel, Aston Martin 
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Picture by: Glenn Dunbar / Motorsport Photos
Sebastian Vettel, Aston Martin 
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Picture by: Glenn Dunbar / Motorsport Photos
Sebastian Vettel, Aston Martin 
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Picture by: Glenn Dunbar / Motorsport Photos
Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas talks to a teammate 
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Foto de: Steve Etherington / Motorsport Photos
Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas talks to a teammate 
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Foto de: Steve Etherington / Motorsport Photos
Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes 
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Foto de: Steve Etherington / Motorsport Photos
Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes 
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Foto de: Steve Etherington / Motorsport Photos
Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes 
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Foto de: Steve Etherington / Motorsport Photos
Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes 
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Foto de: Steve Etherington / Motorsport Photos
Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes 
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Foto de: Steve Etherington / Motorsport Photos
Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes W12 
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Foto de: Steve Etherington / Motorsport Photos
Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes W12 
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Foto de: Charles Coates / Motorsport Photos
Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes W12, and containers 
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Foto de: Steve Etherington / Motorsport Photos
Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes W12, comes out of the storage 
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Foto de: Steve Etherington / Motorsport Photos
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