Doing away with refuelling will fuel excitement

It is appropriate on the 15th anniversary of the death of Ayrton Senna that Formula One should restore a form of racing at which the Brazilian would have excelled. Changes for 2010 include a ban on refuelling, a tactic reintroduced in 1994, the year Senna was killed during the San Marino Grand Prix. The Brazilian never had the chance to come to terms with fuel stops which effectively split each Grand Prix into two or three separate races and coined phrases such as: "Well, I just sat behind him until the first pit stop because I knew I was running two laps longer and could overtake him then." Being a consummate professional, Senna would have adapted to the revised thinking but the chances are he would have missed the more exhilarating challenge of having to overtake a rival on the race track rather than when he was stationary in the pit lane.

Refuelling was par for the course in the 1950s when races lasted between two and three hours and petrol was sloshed manually into a tank in the tail of the car, just behind the driver's seat. The advent of smaller cars and less powerful engines in the 1960s made non-stop races de rigueur, the 1961 Dutch Grand Prix setting an unbeaten record as all 15 drivers completed the race without either stopping or retiring.

In 1982, design genius Gordon Murray figured he could get away with starting the thirsty Brabham-BMW turbo on soft tyres and a light load of fuel, make a refuelling stop halfway through and, having built up a huge advantage, continue in the lead. That trend was banned at the end of the year and not thought of again until 1994 as a means of spicing the show.

Complicated pleasure

Refuelling has been nectar to strategists at the expense of fans who enjoy the less complicated pleasure of wheel-to-wheel racing. From next year, drivers will have to cope with cars carrying about 220 litres at the start and then deal with the dramatic change in handling and performance as fuel is burned off. It is fitting that Alain Prost should have won the last championship before the return of refuelling, the Frenchman being a master at taking care of his tyres, sometimes without stopping. It was easy to discount Prost as he lay in seventh or eighth place in the opening laps, only to gradually overhaul those ahead who had been too aggressive and abused their tyres in the early stages.

Much will depend on the 2010 tyre regulations that have yet to be announced. If the current practice of every driver having to use each of the two types of tyre available is continued, then pit stops will be necessary, a likely scenario since it will add interest as well as allowing the mechanics to contribute to the team-work during each race. The ban on refuelling will rid each team of the expense of having to transport two hefty fuel rigs and reduce the pit stop from around seven or eight seconds to less than five.

If the different tyre specifications remain, the softer of the two is only likely to be suitable for the final phase of the race when the car is comparatively light and there is more rubber on the track. An additional complication will be a ban on the heated blankets which currently bring tyres close to working temperature before use.
It also remains to be seen how qualifying will be structured. In Barcelona next Saturday, the top-10 shoot-out will, as usual, require drivers to carry the fuel necessary for the first phase of the race. Next year, asking the fastest 10 drivers to qualify cars lumbered with an extra 150 kilogrammes would be the same as making Usian Bolt run in hobnailed boots. It is to be hoped that the cars will be at their lightest and fastest all weekend. If that means getting rid of the current caveat "I'm not fastest because the guy on pole is carrying less fuel" and switches the emphasis to the fastest shall be first, it will mark the return to a plan of which Senna, winner of 65 pole positions, would approve.