Insights, deep-dives & race intel
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F1's Heat Hazard Rule and the Cooling Vests Drivers Don't Want
Above 31°C the FIA declares a Heat Hazard and every car must carry a cooling system. Drivers can refuse to wear the vest, and the rule makes sure it costs them nothing.
F1 Marshals: The 838 Unpaid People Who Run Every Grand Prix
An FIA report put numbers on it. It takes an average of 838 volunteers to run a Grand Prix, they train 50 to 75 hours a year, and two thirds take annual leave to be there.
Why Do F1 Cars Spark? The 10mm Rule Behind the Show
The sparks are burning titanium, and they come from a safety device fitted in 1994. Half a millimetre of wear on it has disqualified a driver from a Grand Prix.
What Happens When It Rains in F1, and Why Races Get Stopped
F1 does not stop for rain because the cars cannot grip. It stops because nobody can see. The wet tyres, the procedures, and the spray problem the sport has failed to solve.
The F1 Helmet Explained: The Toughest 1.5kg on the Grid
The F1 helmet explained, how a 1.5kg carbon shell withstands a 55-tonne crush and an 800 degree fire, the Zylon strip added after Felipe Massa's injury, and why it is the driver's last line of defence.
How F1 Became So Safe: From a Deadly Sport to One Fatality in 30 Years
How F1 became so safe, the deadly decades when drivers died routinely, Jackie Stewart's crusade, the 1994 Imola weekend that changed everything, and the innovations that made the modern car survivable.
What Is the HANS Device in F1? The Simple Collar That Ended a Killer
The HANS device explained in full, the biomechanics of how a simple carbon collar stops a fatal head injury, the 20-year fight to get drivers to wear it, and how it turned basilar skull fracture from a killer into a rarity.
How Many G's Do F1 Drivers Experience? G-Force Explained
How many g's F1 drivers take under braking and cornering, why 2026 cars brake far less hard, why the neck is the hardest part, and the biggest crash loads ever recorded in the sport.
What Is the Halo in F1? The Hated Device That Keeps Saving Lives
The F1 halo explained, the decade of deaths that forced it in, the alternatives that were rejected, how a 7kg titanium hoop withstands 12 tonnes, and every time it has saved a driver.