Summer break – Why is F1 silent for two weeks?

Some hate it, others give it a warm welcome. Fans may miss Formula 1 terribly during its demise, but the team members are happy to take the opportunity to recharge their batteries while away from the race.

In recent championship seasons, the summer break has turned into a long period in August, during which Formula 1 exhales its fatigue from the first half of the season and in the meantime prepares for the second period, just as intense and full of action.

The three-week summer vacation encompasses a period commonly referred to as the summer shutdown.

This term does not only refer to weeks without competition, but to a real stoppage. Article 24.1 of the Sporting Regulations requires all teams to respect a two-week period in August during which their activities are severely restricted.

The rules state: “All competitors must observe two periods of rest: The first period of fourteen (14) consecutive calendar days during the months of July and/or August.

“If two consecutive Competitions during this period are separated by only seventeen (17) days, a break period of thirteen (13) consecutive calendar days must be respected.

“In both cases, competitors must inform the FIA ​​of their intention to suspend the competition within thirty (30) days following the start of the Championship.”

The summer shutdown was introduced as part of cost-cutting measures. The expensive development race is suddenly abandoned for two weeks, saving teams huge amounts of resources.

Second, racing calendars have become extremely long. Considering the inaugural Formula 1 season that consisted of seven races, the current 24-race calendar may seem incredibly long, considering that Formula 1 stops in 22 countries on 5 continents.

The factories are silent. Almost absolute silence. Any work aimed at improving the performance of the cars is strictly prohibited during this period. This means that the design office, the machine shop, the testing and development department are empty and even some suppliers are affected by this closure.

According to the restrictions, “during the shutdown periods, no competitor or competitor affiliate may perform or request any third-party vendor to perform any of the following activities for or on behalf of the competitor:

(a) The operation or use of a wind tunnel, except as expressly permitted by Article 24.4.

(b) Exploitation or use of any computing resources for CFD simulations, except as specifically permitted by Section 24.4.

(c) Production or development of wind tunnel parts, automotive parts, test parts or tooling.

(d) Subassembly of automobile parts or assembly of automobiles.

(e) Any work activity carried out by any employee, consultant or subcontractor engaged in design, development or production (excluding any work activity to be undertaken on the circuit in preparation for the Competition immediately after the downtime).

However, some services can remain open without any restrictions. These include marketing, financial and legal services, as they do not have a direct impact on the car’s performance.

Interestingly, teams can define for themselves what part of the summer break they designate as a downtime, but it must be continuous.

This break goes by quickly and once it’s over, the factory is buzzing with noise again and every member of the team starts pushing harder than ever to finish the season in the best possible way.