Formula 1 teams have unanimously agreed to a raft of new rule changes that will implement fresh cost-cutting measures to help the sport see out the economical aftershocks of the Covid-19 pandemic.
All ten teams have accepted a proposal to lower the budget cap set to be introduced next year by $30m to $145m.
This figure will be reduced again to $140m in 2022 and $135m from 2023.
Ferrari were a key player in the negotiation phase as the storied Italian outfit refused to accept any figure below $150m as it would result in the axing of hundreds of jobs.
But all teams did finally agree of a compromise which all could accept.
One of the more radical rule changes will see the introduction of an aerodynamic handicap system to help bridge the deficit in performance between the top three teams and the rest of the field.
F1 will stipulate a strict amount of permitted wind-tunnel testing and introduce a sliding scale of allowance on R&D depending on the team’s finishing position in the world championship.
Ultimately this rule change will see the worse performing teams being allowed more aerodynamic R&D than the teams that perform exceptionally well.
Other minor rule changes involved in the proposal restrict engine development in 2020 and 2021, the requirement for all teams to race their 2020 car next season and the reshaping of race formats which includes the introduction of two-day weekends.
While all ten teams have agreed to the rule changes, the FIA will make its final ratifications during next month’s World Motor Sport Council meeting.
Main Image: Getty
