2011 saw one of the biggest changes in Formula 1 in the history of the sport, as the Drag Reduction System was introduced to help aid overtaking and make races more entertaining.
DRS allows the rear wing of the F1 cars to open at certain parts of circuits, when within a second of the car ahead, decreasing drag and therefore allowing the attacking car to gain a temporary pace advantage.
The innovation has been a roaring success since its introduction just over a decade ago, playing a major part in some of the most entertaining races in F1 history, however it has recently been suggested that the system could do with a revamp.
Sky Sports pundit and former F1 driver Martin Brundle has argued that DRS has become too powerful in recent seasons and has suggested that the length of DRS zones around circuits should be reduced.
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“You have to say the DRS by and large has been too strong this year hasn’t it,” said Brundle.
“Passes are made down the straight and they need to be made under braking.
“They need to put you in play to make the overtake not to actually just plain overtake. They need to shorten the distances, delay the activation.”
Brundle may get his wish as early as next season, as the FIA’s head of single-seat racing, Nikolas Tombazis, has hinted that these changes might be made to the DRS system to weaken its power.
“In some races, we may well need to actually reduce the DRS zones,” suggested Tombazis.
“We don’t want overtaking to be, as we say, inevitable or actually easy. It still has to be a fight.
“If it happens too quickly, if you see a car approaching and then going by and disappearing, it’s actually worse than being at the back and fighting.
“It needs the right balance to be found there.”
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The new regulations that came into effect at the start of 2023 enabled cars to be able to follow each other closer than before, with the effects of dirty air being less significant with the new cars.
This however means that by the time cars enter DRS zones, they are now usually close behind the car in front and make the overtake much easier than they should be able to.
It is yet to be announced whether the FIA will make any changes to DRS in time for next season, or whether this will become something that is implemented in the long term, as the FIA continue to increase the competitiveness and entertainment value of F1.