Concours d'Elegance

hot starts

How much faster are the fastest cars?

lights out

Each driver's best qualifying lap time must not exceed 107% of the overall best time. (The race director and stewards often allow exceptions.)

away we go

Gaps often increase on the first few laps as cars toward the back are slowed by turbulence and traffic.

lap gaps

What's an undercut?

under the rainbow

Seb and Max undercut Lewis by making early pit stops. Seb also undercuts his teammate Charles.

Seb and Max both stop on lap 19. With fresh tires, they are much quicker than the leaders. Charles stops on lap 20, and Seb overtakes as he exits the pits.

Lewis now leads, but his tires are worn. Seb, Charles, and Max are catching him. After Valtteri stops on lap 22, he is also quicker than Lewis. Lewis finally pits on lap 26 and rejoins the race in 4th place.

The cost of stopping early comes later in the race: Seb, Charles, and Max will have relatively old tires at the end. In this race, 3 safety cars made tire conservation relatively easy, and the close confines of a street circuit made overtaking difficult.

garde le pour toi

Teammates Lewis and Valtteri attack the leader with two different strategies. Charles must defend against Lewis undercutting him and Valtteri catching him late in the race.

Charles, Valtteri, and Lewis start on fast, but short-lived, soft tires. Lewis stops for medium tires on lap 19. Charles stops for hard tires on lap 20 and rejoins the race just ahead of Lewis.

Charles' hard tires will last longer, but Lewis has more grip for now. Charles struggles to stay ahead and is warned by the stewards for unsportsmanlike driving, but he manages to keep Lewis behind him.

After Valtteri stops for medium tires on lap 27, he is faster than anyone. On lap 42, he passes Lewis, whose tires are now badly worn. Lewis salvages a point by stopping again for soft tires and setting the fastest lap. Valtteri catches Charles, but the race ends before he can overtake.

maximum overdrive

Max goes long, making no attempt to undercut the leaders.

Max qualifies 2nd but drops to 8th at the start. By lap 9, he is 5th and catching the leaders. Seb and Valtteri pit on lap 22, then Charles on lap 23. Max and Lewis both stay out, effectively saying: Go ahead and undercut us. We'll pass you later when your tires wear out.

Lewis suffers wing damage from a kerb and stops on lap 31. Max inherits the lead, then stops on lap 32 and rejoins in 4th. Max now has fresher tires than the leaders, but he must pass 3 people to win.

Charles, Valtteri, and Seb pay a price for stopping early. Each driver must either stop again or manage the tires for almost 50 laps. Seb pits a second time after Max passes him on lap 50. Valtteri stays out, and Max passes him on lap 56. Charles retains the lead until Max pushes past him on lap 69.

finnish line

Valtteri puts himself in Kimi's way to help Lewis catch up.

Lewis and Kimi overtake each other after an early safety car. Kimi retains the lead and pits early on lap 20, possibly to prevent Lewis from undercutting him. Lewis stops for tires on lap 28.

Lewis exits the pits several seconds behind Kimi. Valtteri, who has not stopped yet, stays out on badly worn tires. Kimi finally passes Valtteri, but now Lewis is close behind him.

Valtteri stops on lap 36 and emerges behind Max. Lewis has fresher tires than Kimi, who cannot stop again without losing the lead. Kimi defends until Lewis finally outbrakes him late in the race.

over easy

Refueling adds another dimension to race strategy. The weight of a full tank can make cars slower after a pit stop, even with fresh tires. Instead of undercutting, drivers can overcut by stopping later.

After an early safety car, Michael's left rear tire is punctured by Giancarlo's front wing. Michael drops to last place. Felipe leads, with everyone else far behind.

When Kimi stops, Fernando stays out and runs quick laps with a light fuel load. Jenson does the same. After their stops, Fernando is ahead of Kimi, and Jenson is close behind.

Fernando stops late again at the next round of pit stops, preventing anyone else from overcutting him. Meanwhile, Michael climbs back to 4th. Felipe's pace is so quick that he wins easily.

box box box

How long does a pit stop take?

stoppage time

In 2019, a typical pit stop took 20-30 seconds, including time spent driving slowly through the pit lane. The shortest pit stops are usually drive-through penalties.

stowe your roll

During the 2013 season, the pit lane speed limit was reduced from 100kph to 80kph. Silverstone pit stops were a few seconds slower on subsequent years.

yas we can

The Yas Marina pit lane is unusual, but pit stop times are typically quick and consistent.

paul ralentit

The redesigned Paul Ricard pit lane added around 5 seconds to a typical pit stop.

home runs

Are the cars getting faster?

velocità dell'italia

Monza is the fastest circuit on the F1 calendar. The 2008 Italian Grand Prix started under the safety car due to heavy rain.

geschwindigkeitheim

From 2008-2014, the German Grand Prix alternated between Hockenheimring and the Nürburgring GP-Strecke. The 2019 race was affected by rain and multiple safety cars.

lauf der stiere

The Österreichring, rebuilt and renamed A1-Ring, fell into disrepair after 2003. It was rebuilt again by Red Bull and resumed hosting F1 races in 2014.

force canada

The Canadian Grand Prix was canceled for 2009, then revived for 2010. The 2011 race was suspended and restarted due to heavy rain.

giro volante

When do drivers set their fastest laps?

open catalan

A new chicane added in 2007 decreased average speeds. After refueling was banned in 2010, fastest laps tend to occur late in the race when cars are lighter.

spoon benders

Designed as a Honda test track, Suzuka includes an extreme mix of fast and slow corners. The 2014 race was started late due to heavy rain and stopped early due to a severe crash.

casino royale

The Monaco street circuit is exceptionally narrow and contains the slowest corner in F1 racing. It is part of the (unofficial) Triple Crown of Motorsport.

acelerando do lago

The São Paulo circuit is known for its unpredictable weather, off-camber corners, and long full-throttle section. The 2012 race included 147 successful overtakes.

rapidité de l'eau rouge

This circuit in the Ardennes features dramatic elevation changes, extremely fast corners, and a microclimate. As of 2020, it is the longest F1 circuit.

golden years

Are drivers getting younger?

all-ages shows

People aged 18-53 have won F1 races. About half of all winning drivers were between 28 and 34 years old.

This density estimate is fairly smooth below 30 but visibly distorted for older drivers. Densities for 2nd and 3rd-place finishers are similar but slightly younger.

good old boys

Over-40 drivers did well in the early years of F1. Much (but not all) of their results are due to Juan Manuel Fangio. Between the ages of 38.9 and 46.2, Fangio scored 23 wins, 10 2nds, and a 3rd.

generation ickx

In the '70s and late '60s, wins by drivers over 40 were less common. Jack Brabham and Graham Hill defied the trend with 7 and 1 wins, and John Love scored a 2nd.

da silva foxes

By the '80s, the age distribution was fairly stable. The over-40 group included a win by Nigel Mansell, 5 podiums by Jacques Laffite, and a 3rd by Mario Andretti.

centurions

Wins by drivers under 25 became common near the start of the 21st century. No driver over 38 finished on a podium, but Michael Schumacher, Gerhard Berger, and Damon Hill won races as 37-year-olds.

electric youth

The age distribution after 2010 is visibly skewed. The median winner was 29.9, roughly the same as in previous decades. Young outliers got younger, including a teenage winner. Nobody over 40 has won a race, but Kimi Räikkönen won at age 39 and Michael Schumacher scored a podium at age 43.

over the hills

Top 10 oldest podium finishers:

	age	date	driver	order
1	53.057	1951-07-01	Luigi Fagioli	1
2	50.795	1950-05-21	Louis Chiron	3
3	49.996	1953-06-07	Felice Bonetto	3
4	48.914	1955-09-11	Piero Taruffi	2
5	48.597	1955-06-05	Nino Farina	3
6	46.209	1957-09-08	Juan Fangio	2
7	44.830	1955-07-16	Karl Kling	3
8	44.616	1950-06-18	Louis Rosier	3
9	44.329	1953-09-13	Luigi Villoresi	3
10	44.293	1970-07-18	Jack Brabham	2

Top 10 youngest podium finishers:

	age	date	driver	order
1	18.623	2016-05-15	Max Verstappen	1
2	18.656	2017-06-25	Lance Stroll	3
3	21.202	2008-09-14	Sebastian Vettel	1
4	21.248	2015-07-26	Daniil Kvyat	2
5	21.443	2014-03-16	Kevin Magnussen	2
6	21.454	2019-03-31	Charles Leclerc	3
7	21.648	2003-03-23	Fernando Alonso	3
8	21.758	2006-09-10	Robert Kubica	3
9	21.788	1997-04-13	Ralf Schumacher	3
10	21.840	1980-01-27	Elio de Angelis	2