In-race power unit penalties scrapped from F1; super licence rules altered; GP2 bids to become new F2 - MotorSportsTalk

The FIA has confirmed that in-race penalties incurred by power unit changes have been scrapped from Formula 1 with immediate effect.

In recent races, a number of drivers have been forced to serve an in-race penalty after failing to serve all of their grid drop due to changes made to their power units.

At the Austrian Grand Prix in June, McLaren was hit with a 25 place grid drop on both of its cars despite qualifying far down the order, prompting many within the paddock to call for a rethink on the ruling.

Following the meeting of the World Motor Sport Council in Mexico City this week, the FIA has confirmed that drivers will now face a maximum penalty of starting from the back of the grid.

Furthermore, the plan to give new engine suppliers an extra power unit for their debut season has also been given the green light, increasing Honda’s allocation in 2015.

As per the FIA’s statement:

“The WMSC has approved the rule adjustments proposed by the F1 Strategy Group and approved by the F1 Commission. These are:

The simplification of the power unit penalties, ensuring that the most a driver can be penalised is to be demoted to the rear of the grid – this will eliminate penalties during the race for these infractions.
New power unit manufacturers to F1 will receive an extra power unit for each driver to use throughout Grands Prix for the season, bringing the total to five – one more than the existing power unit suppliers. This will be applied retrospectively to Honda.

“These changes to the sporting regulations will come into force with immediate effect.”

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It has also been confirmed that some changes have been made to the super licence points system that is due to come into force for the 2016 season.

It was announced last year that a new points system would reward drivers for success in other championship, ensuring that they had achieved enough to warrant a place on the F1 grid.

However, championships such as DTM and Formula E were omitted, whilst series such as Formula Renault 3.5 appeared to be undervalued.

Now though, the WMSC has relaxed some of the regulations and will make alterations to the points system:

“The WMSC approved the update of the Super Licence regulations with a view to:

Increasing flexibility for drivers having qualified for a Super Licence, but do not have the opportunity to race in Formula One. These drivers will now keep this possibility for three years (eg. typical F1 test driver situation)
Enlarging the list of Series included in the Super Licence point system following numerous requests from series for inclusion
Adjusting of points given to some series already included to better reflect the strength of series.
Granting the champion of the FIA Formula E Championship with a Super Licence, although the Championship is not part of the points system.”

The ‘future F2’ and GP2 (which could be the same series, see below) have both been devalued, whilst Formula Renault 3.5 and Super Formula have increased by five points.

DTM, WTCC and even Indy Lights have now joined the points system as well, which you can see in full here.

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Finally, it has been confirmed that GP2 is bidding to promote the new FIA F2 championship, and is now in discussions with the FIA over the tender.

“The WMSC acknowledged an update in the call for expression of interest related to the creation of the new F2 Championship; the intended final step in the FIA single-seater ladder to Formula One,” the statement reads.

“The FIA has received an offer from GP2 Series Limited to be appointed as the promoter of the championship, and discussions are ongoing with the aim being to secure the best possible FIA F2 Championship.”

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Jett Lawrence remains perfect in the Pro Motocross series after recording another perfect round at Hangtown in Rancho Cordova, California. In his second start on a 450, Lawrence won his second National with his fourth consecutive moto win. It is getting increasingly difficult to find the right superlatives to describe the exploits on the reigning 250 West Supercross champion.

“The track was so brutal out there,” Lawrence told NBC Sports Jason Thomas. “The bike handles amazing even when it’s not too friendly. You had to be really patient; you couldn’t take too much. I didn’t eat enough before that second moto. I kind of lost energy halfway through, but luckily I could use technique and balance and just keep that flow going.”

Lawrence leaves Hangtown with an 18-point advantage over Ferrandis in the 450 Motocross standings, but perhaps more importantly, he climbed to 19th in the SuperMotocross standings and should he stay there, he has an automatic invitation to the Main events in the SMX Championship.

“On this track, you just have to manage,” Lawrence continued. “If you try to take too much and not respect the track, it will bite you very quickly. It was humbling on the first few laps. I got kicked on the cutout at the start of the third section, the tabletop going to the left. I had to get my focus because the boys were coming.”

Still in his first few races since returning from a concussion suffered at Houston in the Supercross series, Dylan Ferrandis finished second with results of third in Moto 1 and second in Moto 2. While Ferrandis was happy with the result, he remains hopeful that he will contend for victory shortly.

“The first moto was very hard for my physically, Ferrandis said. “I got arm pump and when you get arm pump your body gets tired. But I’m very happy because we made a big change for the second moto. We tried stuff every session today and in the last moto the bike was much better, but unfortunately I wasn’t sure what I could do with this bike because the track was very hard and difficult to pass.”

RESULTS: How they finished in the 450 Overall at Hangtown

With the rash of injuries at the end of the Supercross season, the podium was filled with heartwarming stories. Cooper Webb returned to action last week in Pala and failed to make the podium. He is steadily improving with a third-place finish in Hangtown. after finishing with a 4-2.

“It’s incredible what seven days can do,” Webb said. “Last week I felt like I was going to get lapped in the second moto. This week, I could see the leader. It was nice. I fought hard, learned how to suffer again there and that felt nice.

Moto 2 wasn’t pretty for Lawrence. On several occasions in the opening laps, he nearly high sided as he rode the front wheel through the ruts. The reward was worth the risk. By the halfway point, Lawrence had 4.5-second lead over Webb, who was embroiled in a tight three-rider battle for second with his teammate Aaron Plessinger pressuring him and Ferrandis ready to take advantage if those made contact.

It took 20 minutes for Plessinger to get around Webb and once he did, he trailed Lawrence by four seconds. But then, with three minutes remaining, Plessinger crashed and had difficulty restarting the bike, handing second back to Webb who has seven seconds behind Lawrence. Plessinger fell to fourth with results of third and sixth.

Adam Cianciarulo rounded out the top five with a 5-4.

Heartbreak for Aaron Plessinger as he was charging forward 💔#ProMotocross #SuperMotocross #HangtownMX pic.twitter.com/vQtKIsuhVg

— Pro Motocross (@ProMotocross) June 4, 2023

Last week Hunter Lawrence won the overall with a 3-1. He repeated that feat in Hangtown in an exact replica of his Fox Raceway results last week. In Moto 1, Lawrence got off to a slow start and lost 10 seconds in the opening laps. Forced to overcome a sixth-place position in the race at the end of Lap 1, he once again caught the riders ahead of him when the field hit heavy traffic. For the second week, scored another 3-1 for the Hangtown National win.

“The start was crucial’ I knew I had to go,” Lawrence told NBC Sports’ Jason Thomas. “They laid a lot of water down, so I didn’t want to be behind any longer than [I was]. First hot one of the year, was a bit of a wakeup call, so I’m happy to get out of here safe and healthy.”

Lawrence’s third-place finish in Moto 1 featured a fierce battle for final spot on the podium when he caught Spain’s Guillem Farres and France’s Tom Vialle. With Lawrence hailing from Australia, the international nature of the sport was highlighted.

Lawrence left Hangtown with a 10-point advantage over Haiden Deegan in the Pro Motocross championship battle.

Click here for 250 overall results

Justin Cooper finished second in both motos to finish second overall. Hangtown represented a huge improvement from Fox Raceway where he finished fifth overall with a 5-4 finish in the two motos. Cooper pressured Haiden Deegan in the second half of Moto 1 and he earned the holeshot in the second moto and stayed within three seconds of Lawrence in that race.

“He was following me a little bit, checking out my lines, seeing where he was better,” Cooper said. “It’s disappointing to give up the lead like that but it was way better than last weekend. I will definitely take two seconds. I want to be on the top of the step. I feel like I get close to the top step but I never get it done. That’s building up the frustration – the fire. I really want to get one of these wins, so it’s time to start digging.”

Haiden Deegan earned the first holeshot of his career in Moto 1 and rode away from the field, building a four-second lead in the opening laps. Cooper trimmed the lead at the halfway point and for a while it leveled off at two seconds. Then Cooper made another charge with three to go and closed to within a second. Deegan was biding his time, however.

“I was saving a little. I knew at the end Justin was going to try and put a charge on. I let him get up close and then sent it super hard at the end to break him a little at the end.”

Deegan’s first moto win comes in only his fourth National and he remains perfect in regard to podiums this year.

“This was a dream since I was a little kid, to win,” Deegan said. “And in my fourth race, it’s gnarly. I was just sending it. I was getting a little tired at the end becasue I left my mouth open the whole time. It’s unreal; I’m so hyped. I wanted to win bad and I proved it to you guys.”

Chaos erupted in turn 1 in Moto 2 Jeremy Martin went and another rider ran over his arm. Michael Mosiman crashed further down the track on that same lap. Both riders were helped off course by the Alpinestars Medical team.

Deegan grabs his first 250 Mx moto win!1️⃣#ProMotocross #SuperMotocross #HangtownMX pic.twitter.com/1FH5s1ZHfn

— Pro Motocross (@ProMotocross) June 3, 2023