15/01/2016
NEWS STORY
FIA president Jean Todt admits that bringing refuelling back to F1 is still on the agenda
In May last year, F1's controversial Strategy Group agreed that refuelling, which was dropped in 2009, would return to the sport in 2017, in an effort to "improve the show".
The return of the practice was one of several decision to come out of a meeting of the group and was aimed at spicing up the sport at a time fans were turning away from F1 along with sponsors.
However, refuelling was dropped at the end of 2009 not only on the grounds of cost and safety, but also the feeling that it was harming the spectacle, turning races into a series of sprints with pit strategy, as opposed to outright lights-to-flag racing deciding the final order.
Sure enough, meeting in Montreal over the Canadian Grand Prix weekend, the teams rejected the return of refuelling on the grounds of cost, safety and the feeling that it leads to processional racing.
Speaking at Silverstone over the British Grand Prix weekend, Force India's deputy team principal Bob Fernley told Reuters the plan was essentially dead and buried.
"The view collectively was that it's not going to improve the show and the decision was not to go forward with that," he said.
However, with its finger very much on the pulse, the FIA's president Jean Todt today admitted that the return of refuelling is still being considered.
"Yes, it is true," the Frenchman told reporters in Birmingham. "If you have some doubt about something, and personally and honestly I have a doubt, talking with the working group meeting we readdress is it right not to have refuelling?
"You know the reason why it was banned?" he continued. "It was the cost of carrying the fuel rig. Now we are in a kind of modern area where we know how it works.
"We are talking about 50,000 euros a year," he argued. "If it is good for the show, I'm in favour of reducing the cost but that is not a key point on the global cost of Formula 1. At least we should discuss it."
Williams Pat Symonds was unimpressed.
"It costs a hell of a lot more than 50,000 euros per team to bring back refuelling," he told Reuters. "It wouldn't even pay the freight, let alone buying the equipment and maintaining it. And you've got to have one person looking after that equipment. There's your 50,000 euros gone and more before you've done anything else.
"When we had refuelling the strategies were far more deterministic than they are now," he added. "At the moment, you can alter your strategy just based on what your tyres are doing and vary things as you wish. The moment you've got refuelling, you can't vary your strategy. You obviously can't stop any later than you are fuelled for and if you stop earlier, you are paying a ridiculous penalty.
"When we got rid of refuelling, I think you got a lot better racing as a result," he concluded. "I'd be very sorry to see it come back."
Not for the first time, Mr Symonds is not alone.