AFIA announce changes for 2013 Season

At Monaco today the AFIA announced a raft of rule changes for the next season of FF1M to build on the experiences learned so far since the series reboot.

The biggest changes on the track will see in-season testing scrapped whilst each race will now have a Friday Practice Session in which teams will be able to set a run plan to develop their cars with team principals being able to choose whether they want to focus on set up for the current event or longer term gains which will affect future races. Teams will also be able to swap one of their race drivers for a test driver if they choose to do so.

In order to simply matters, Engine testing will be a single option from 2013 onwards. The way that Works and Customer teams operate will be changed as a result.

Off the track, the budget cap has been increased to 150 credits. Furthermore, If a team has part of their budget leftover after purchasing drivers and an engine, the remaining credits will be used for “car development” which will increase aerodynamic performance.

Finally, multi-season contracts, and the renewal of existing contracts outside of the silly season, have been banned as it was felt that under the new budget cap rules this could be exploited/unfair. Existing  multi-year deals will be honoured however no new contacts of that nature may be signed.