Formula 1 Basics - The Grand Prix Format

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Throughout the Formula 1 season drivers take on 20 Grand Prix at circuits all around the world. These weekend events take place from Friday to Sunday and have 5 main sessions.

Circuits (in order)

Australia, China, Bahrain, Russia, Spain, Monaco, Canada, Azerbaijan, Austria, Great Britain, Hungary, Belgium, Italy, Singapore, Malaysia, Japan, USA, Mexico, Brazil and Abu Dhabi.

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Free Practice 1, 2 and 3 (Friday/Saturday Morning)

Drivers may participate in 2 x 1.5 hour practice sessions on the Friday of the weekend, and a 1 hour practice session on Saturday before the qualifying event. Practice gives teams a chance to test upgrades, gather data and give the drivers a chance to get comfortable.

While individual practice sessions are not compulsory, drivers must partake in at least one practice session to be eligible for the race.

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Qualifying (Saturday Afternoon)

In qualifying, drivers aim for fast laps in an elimination style event. The qualifying session determines the drivers position on the grid at the start of a race, with the fastest lap setter at the front (pole position) and the slowest at the back. It is split into three sections:

Q1	Q2	Q3
Lasts for 18 minutes, where the 5 slowest drivers are eliminated and the top 15 continue to Q2.	After a short break, the lap times are reset and the drivers compete in a 15 minute session where the 5 slowest drivers are eliminated and the top 10 continue to Q3.	After another break, the times are reset and a 12 minute session determines the top ten grid places.

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The Race (Sunday)

Formation Lap

The race event is strictly organised to minimize the amount of time the cars are sitting still on the grid. When the drivers are lined up they wait for a green light to indicate the start of the formation lap. Their actions on this lap are extremely vital in the performance of their start. A spectacular display of burnouts, heavy braking and weaving ensure that enough heat is transferred into the brakes and tyres. No overtaking is permitted on this lap and as they make their way back to the start/finish line, they return to their grid positions in preparation for the start.

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Race Start

The race director will now initiate the start sequence. The drivers eyes fixate on five red lights. When they go out after a random time delay, the race has begun. With roaring power each car pulls away in a spectacular melee battle for positions into the first corner. The race start has historically been a theater for war; many races have been decided in the blink of an eye.

The length of each race is the smallest numbers of laps that exceeds 305km and cannot run for more than 2 hours.

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Points

Drivers score points based on their finishing position in a race. The driver with the highest number of points at the end of the season is the championship winner. There is also a separate standing called the constructors championship. The two drivers from each team have their scores added into a resulting team total. The team with the highest number of points at the end of the season is the constructors champion.

Position	Points
1	25
2	18
3	15
4	12
5	10
6	8
7	6
8	4
9	2
10	1

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