V8 Supercars Releases 2014 Rule Changes
V8 Supercars has today released changes to the Operations Manual, the rulebook governing the 2014 Championship season.
This follows the announcement of a revised format for next year’s season opener the Clipsal 500, where Saturday will now stage two individual races, with separate qualifying sessions and points awarded for both races.
Key amendments to the rule book include changes to tyre use and practice, usually run on Fridays for the V8 Supercars; format changes for the Dunlop Series; and a revised Safety Car restart procedure.
Rather than cars accelerating when the Safety Car returns to pit lane, an acceleration zone will be in place.
The Safety Car will control the field, then prior to accelerating away from the field it will slow to 60km/h. The field remains in a single file and the lead car cannot accelerate until it has reached the acceleration zone, which will be on the approach to the start/finish line.
V8 Supercars General Manager of Motorsport Damien White said, “There has been a huge amount of controversy around the lead car accelerating too early. This way, drivers won’t have to wait for the call from their team over the radio. It’s obvious when they’re in the acceleration zone.
"The additional benefit is it much easier for official to judge a breach.
"Finally, the suspense of seeing 28 cars rumbling towards the line at 60km/h is brilliant.”
It is hoped the new system will eliminate the outcome seen at the Austin 400, where the top three race finishers were penalised post-race after accelerating too soon. At recent event the ARMOR ALL Gold Coast 600, all four Safety Car restarts were investigated by officials.
Other changes for 2014 include:
The COTF (Car of the Future) definition being replaced with NG (New Generation).
All practice sessions to be time certain.
Additional driver practice sessions at Winton, Queensland Raceway and Sydney Motorsport Park, with P1 extended to a 75-minute session.
A 15-minute time extension for qualifying to be shared between two sessions, when run on the same day.
The adoption of FIA wording for an additional formation lap when a car stalls, and for “suspending and resuming” a race.
A specified amount of fuel to be taken on board during Sunday races, excluding the PIRTEK Enduro Cup – as seen at the 2013 ARMOR ALL Gold Coast 600.
While only some details have been announced regarding next year’s formats, consistency is the key with all events to fall within the category of SuperStreet, SuperSprint or PIRTEK Enduro Cup.
The PIRTEK Enduro Cup will continue as it ran this season, combining points from the Wilson Security Sandown 500, Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 and ARMOR ALL Gold Coast 600, to crown a Champion pair after the prestigious big three.
SuperSprint events will consist of two 100km races on Saturdays with a single 200km feature race on the Sunday, with the exception of the Auckland race, which will include an additional 100km across the ANZAC weekend.
Townsville has been upgraded to a ‘500’ to align with the other SuperStreet events.
Click here for the full 2014 calendar and stay tuned to v8supercars.com.au for all your official news.
