After a 2017 season that re-consecrated, for the fourth time, the British Lewis Hamilton, in Mercedes-AMG, the Formula 1 World Championship is back on stage and in the limelight. But also with desires, on the part of the fans, for greater competitiveness, emotion and adrenaline.
Underlying this hope are the changes in teams, team formations, cars and even in terms of regulations. Although, judging by the pre-season tests already carried out, in which, with Mercedes, it once again demonstrated that it can continue one step ahead of the other candidates, it seems to be 2017 again.
The cars
In the case of single-seaters, the main novelty for 2018 lies in the introduction of Halo. System designed to ensure greater safety for pilots in the event of an accident, thanks to the mounting of a raised structure around the cockpit. But that ended up receiving strong criticism, both from fans of the sport, for the image… unusual that it gives to single-seaters, as from the pilots themselves, displeasure with questions of visibility that the equipment raises.
Still, the truth is that the FIA has not backed down and Halo will be a mandatory presence in all cars starting for the 21 races of the 2018 World Cup.
the regulations
In the regulations, the novelty is, mainly, the limitation in the number of engines that each driver can use in a season. From the previous four, it goes down to just three. Since, if he needs to use more engines, the pilot suffers penalties on the starting grid.In the field of tyres, there was an increase in the offer available to teams, with Pirelli launching two new types of tires — hyper soft (pink) and super hard (orange) — with seven now existing instead of the previous five.
the grand prix
The 2018 season will see an increase in the number of races, now being 21 . Something that will make this season the longest and most demanding in history, the result of the return of two historic European stages — Germany and France.
On the other hand, the championship no longer has the race in Malaysia.
the teams
But if the number of grand prix awards promises even less rest time, on the starting grid, there will be no less excitement. Starting with the return of the historic Alfa Romeo, after an absence of more than 30 years , in partnership with Sauber. Escuderia, which, by the way, had already maintained a strong connection with another Italian brand for some years: Ferrari.The same situation happens with Aston Martin and Red Bull — called, of course, Aston Martin Red Bull Racing — although, in this case, with the British manufacturer continuing a link it already had.
the pilots
As for the pilots, there are some new and paying faces in the 'Grande Circus', as is the case of the Monegasque Charles Leclerc (Sauber), a rookie that promises a lot as a result of the excellent results achieved in the training levels. Also newcomer is Russian Sergey Siroktin (Williams), with a much more modest service record and with the respective arguments more supported by Russian rubles.
Also of interest, the fight that promises to continue between two well-known names: the four-time world champions Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) and Sebastien Vettel (Ferrari) . They are fighting, this season, for the conquest of the fifth scepter, which will allow them to ascend to the restricted group of just five drivers who have already managed to win five world championships in 70 years of Formula 1.
Start up happens again in Australia
The 2018 Formula 1 World Championship starts in Australia, more precisely at the Melbourne circuit, on March 25th. With the last stage of the World Cup taking place in Abu Dhabi, on the Yas Marina circuit, on 25 November.
Here is the calendar for the 2018 Formula 1 World Championship:
| RACE | CIRCUIT | DATE |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | Melbourne | 25 march |
| Bahrain | Bahrain | 8 april |
| China | shanghai | 15 april |
| Azerbaijan | Baku | 29 april |
| Spain | Catalonia | May 13th |
| monaco | Monte Carlo | May 27 |
| Canada | Montreal | June 10 |
| France | Paul Ricard | 24 June |
| Austria | Red Bull Ring | 1 July |
| Great Britain | silverstone | 8 July |
| Germany | Hockenheim | 22 July |
| Hungary | Hungaroring | 29 July |
| Belgium | Spa-Francorchamps | 26 august |
| Italy | monza | 2 september |
| Singapore | Marina Bay | 16 september |
| Russia | Sochi | 30 september |
| Japan | Suzuka | 7 october |
| USA | Americas | 21 october |
| Mexico | Mexico City | 28 october |
| Brazil | Interlagos | 11 november |
| Abu Dhabi | Yas Marina | 25 november |