What are the seven technical rule changes in 2023 in F1?

FIA makes changes for the upcoming 2023 season with six sprint races.

After the new regulations for 2022, the FIA is making a few changes for 2023 to make it easier for the teams. There already have been significant changes called in for the next year. Say, the number of sprint races will increase from three to six in 2023. Following the grid penalty chaos at Monza, the governing body decided to refine the grid penalty patterns to help determine the starting positions with fewer complications.

Aerodynamic changes to combat porpoising

This term may have vanished over time, but the most major changes for the 2023 F1 season relate to the floor of the cars and aim to get rid of porpoising once and for all. The FIA argued safety was the main driver for these changes, but that argument was questioned by several teams. The parties have since reached a compromise and the rule changes have been approved by the World Motor Sports Council.

Floor changes to assist the above

The FIA initially wanted to increase the floor edges by 25 millimetres, but it has since been clarified that this has been reduced to 15 millimetres. This was after loud protests from F1 teams who had already dealt with porpoising and were therefore simply able to adjust the ride height lower.

Minimum weight slightly increased

The minimum weight of the cars will go down slightly. A minimum weight of 796 kilograms will apply in 2023, down from 798 kilograms in 2022. This change comes after the minimum weight for the 2022 F1 season was revised upwards as the majority of teams struggled to get the car to weigh.

Williams apparently was ready to strip the paint so that it could weigh less.

Role Bar changes for safety purposes

Following Guanyu Zhou's terrifying accident at the British Grand Prix, modifications to the rollbar were deemed necessary after the component proved unable to withstand the impact of the crash and broke off as a result. The part must be able to withstand heavier loads and be able to withstand an impact of 15G with the ground. Also, from 2023, the roll bar must be able to withstand both forward and rearward forces. Another change in terms of safety will be made to the mirrors. The surface area of the mirrors will be increased to provide better “blind-spot” visibility and improvement of brake circuit definition.

Fuel Temperature

After fuel temperature issues arose several times during the 2022 F1 season, the FIA decided to make a rule change. Whereas in 2022 the fuel must not be colder than 20 degrees Celsius, from 2023 the temperature must not be more than 10 degrees below the ambient temperature. In cold weather, an overall minimum temperature of ten degrees Celsius will apply. The ambient temperature will be recorded one hour before a practice session or three hours before the race by a weather service designated by the FIA.

Tyre use during qualifying

Things are also going to change during two qualifying sessions next year. As a test, drivers will be required to use specific tyre types during each part of the qualifying session in question. This will reduce the total number of tyre sets allowed during a race weekend from 13 to 11. During the two qualifying sessions in which this test is conducted, drivers will be given four sets of softs instead of eight, while the number of mediums and hards will be increased from three to four. During each stage of qualifying, drivers have to use a different compound: In Q1 it is the hard tyre, in Q2 the medium tyre and in Q3 the soft tyre.

Retuned grid penalty format

Changes to the Formula 1 Sporting Regulations have also been made, now the procedure to determine grid positions after multiple penalties have been applied has been clarified. Article 28.3 of the sporting regulations now no longer mandates that a driver must start from the back if they incur 15 places of grid penalties.

This has been amended after a Ferrari changed multiple elements on Charles Leclerc's power unit at different times during the Belgian Grand Prix weekend, in an attempt to avoid a 'back of the grid penalty. Now the regulation states if a driver has: "accrued more than 15 cumulative grid position penalties, or who have been penalised to start at the back of the grid, will start behind any other classified driver."

Any drivers with 15 or fewer grid penalties are 'filled in' based on their results in qualifying. If two drivers end up in the same position with a penalty, the fastest based on their qualifying time is moved forward one place.