Formula 1 boss wants more noise and more power from 2021

The boss of Formula 1 wants cars from 2021 to be louder, more powerful, and more, um, overtake-y. 

Ahead of the Bahrain GP this weekend, F1 CEO Chase Carey presented both the teams and the FIA with a grand vision of how he sees the sport from 2021.

Chief among which stands the necessity for simpler, more powerful ‘power units’ that have to be cheaper and “reduce the necessity of grid penalties”. And feature plenty more noise.

Yet he also continued the commitment Formula 1 has to road-relevancy (they’ll still be hybrids), and for each manufacturer to “build unique and original” units.

No doubt addressing criticism that motorsport’s top tier now lacks race-spectacle, Carey stressed the need to “make cars more raceable to increase overtaking opportunities”. Fitting that this particular comment comes ahead of the Bahrain GP.

Future F1 cars will still have to be different from each other – though some parts that “are not relevant to fans” will be standardised – and engineering remains key. But Carey did say that the defining characteristic of Formula 1 from 2021 will be the “driver’s skill”. That, he said, “must be the predominant factor in the performance of the car”.

Costs? F1 wants the money you spend to be “more decisive”, rather than “how much money you spend”. And in news that will no doubt light a few fires, F1 wants a cost-cap that somehow “maintains F1’s position as the pinnacle of motorsport with state-of-the-art technology”.

Even how the money gets distributed was covered, F1 reckoning that a new system should be more balanced, based on teams’ current performance.

“Formula 1 is a sport with a rich history,” Carey said. “We want to preserve, protect and enhance that history by unleashing F1’s potential, by putting our fans at the heart of a more competitive and more exciting sport.

“We are driven by one desire: to create the world’s leading sporting brand. Fan-centred, commercially successful, profitable for our teams, and with technological innovation at its heart,” he added.

A lot to take in, but if it’s a closer, louder, faster and hairier series from 2021, we’re all in. As always, dive in below and let us know what you’d like to see from F1 in the future.