Formula 1 season opener in 2025 has sparked concerns about potentially boring races in the top class. To spice up the races strategically, Pirelli has opted for slightly softer tire compounds compared to last year for Jeddah and Miami races. The higher degradation is expected to lead to more pit stops, varied strategies, and thus, more entertainment value for viewers. While this had no effect in Jeddah due to low tire wear rates, it will have a bigger impact in Miami. In Saudi Arabia, Mario Isola, F1 Pirelli’s head project, discussed with F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali other ways to enhance the excitement of races.
Apart from softer compounds, the federation is looking into other interventions, as reported by Motorsport.com from the F1 GP Miami paddock. This includes increasing the pit lane speed limit to make more pit stops engaging. For most Grand Prix races, the speed limit is set at 80 kilometers per hour, except for four exceptions – Melbourne, Monaco, Zandvoort, and Singapore, where it will be reduced to 60 kilometers per hour for safety reasons. The FIA has confirmed that Monaco’s limit will not be altered but aims to intervene in Zandvoort and Singapore races this year. A higher pit lane speed could shorten overall pit stop times, making it more appealing for teams to attempt more pit stops and diverse strategies.
This kind of intervention may require some “minor adjustments” in Zandvoort and Singapore’s pit lanes, which must be completed (and approved) before the changes can be officially communicated. However, no rule amendments are needed. Article 34.7 of the sporting regulations states, “The 80 km/h speed limit shall be observed in the pit lane during the race. However, this limit may be altered by the race director after receiving a recommendation from the safety delegate.” This means that 80 km/h is the norm in F1, and the current 60 km/h is a deviation from it.
For Monaco, as previously mentioned, this adjustment is not feasible, although Formula 1 has opted for at least two mandatory pit stops there. Nonetheless, drivers are still questioning the extent of this intervention and how exactly it will work in practice. “I’m sure they will still determine which lap you have to stop, like in Formula 2. Otherwise, you could stop in lap two. If not, you could stop in lap one, then in lap two and then finish the entire race on hard tires,” Oliver Bearman said during a media day in Florida. “But, I think they will avoid something like that and set, for example, that the pit window will open from lap 15. I don’t know exactly how it will work, but at least it could provide interesting results,” the Haas driver predicted.
