Officials have revealed tweaks to the third DRS zone at the Bahrain International Circuit ahead of this weekend’s Formula 1 Bahrain Grand Prix.
Teams completed three days of running at the venue last week ahead of the championship beginning this weekend.
That saw Red Bull emerge favourites while Aston Martin proved the surprise of the test.
Many have gone so far as to predict the Silverstone-based operation could join the leading contenders at the head of the field.
However, changes to the DRS zone along the front straight in Bahrain could impact the racing.
DRS change in Bahrain
Last year, the detection point for the third zone was 100 metres before Turn 14.
Officially, that is prior to the penultimate turn but in reality the last meaningful corner on the circuit. The activation point was then 170 metres after Turn 15.
For 2023, the detection zone remains where it was, however, the activation point is now 250 metres after Turn 15.
The net result is an 80-metre reduction in the length of the zone down the front straight.
It’s a change that comes after overtaking along the pit straight last year proved too easy.
As a result, drivers going would cede the spot into Turn 1 and instead use the first DRS zone to reclaim the position on the run to Turn 4.
That was the case in an almighty scrap for the lead in last year’s race between eventual winner Charles Leclerc and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
More changes to come
The change to the third DRS zone comes after the F1 Commission met recently and agreed to make changes at some circuits.
Bahrain was among those identified, as were Jeddah, Baku, and Miami.
In Australia, the fourth DRS zone that was used on Friday in 2022 event before being removed will be reinstated.
Speedcafe.com first reported its return in December before the F1 Commission confirmed the news last month.
In Bahrain, track action gets underway with practice on Friday, beginning at 14:30 local time (22:30 AEDT).
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