THE FIA introduced a mandatory rule change for all teams ahead of the Las Vegas Grand Prix by means of a new technical directive.

Formula 1 returns to the United States for the third time this season for this weekend’s event, with Max Verstappen knowing that victory under the Nevada lights would guarantee a fourth consecutive drivers’ championship.

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This is the case after a great ride in Brazil last timewhere the Dutchman extended his championship lead over McLaren’s Lando Norris to 62 points.

FIA publishes technical directive

However, ahead of the weekend it emerged that the FIA ​​had issued a technical directive in a bid to crack down on teams exploiting a loophole in preventing board wear.

In recent races, some teams have reportedly managed to preserve their car’s board by installing pads on the ground. Essentially, this allows them to operate their machines as close to the ground as possible without wearing their board beyond the 1mm tolerance.

In the era of ground effect regulations, this likely gives these teams an advantage in downforce and speed.

However, according to Motorsportthe new technical directive removes some of the freedoms granted by the previous one, which allowed the above loophole to be exploited.

Their report also claims that Red Bull was the team that reported the issue to the FIA ​​after the Brazilian GP, ​​expressing concerns that some of its rivals were exploiting the flaw. The FIA ​​reacted in time, publishing the new directive ahead of this weekend’s action.

Of course, board wear is a serious consideration for all teams, and any car that exceeds the 1mm wear limit faces huge penalty consequences.

Last year, for example, Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc were disqualified from 2023 United States Grand Prix for such an offense.

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