IT’S GO! GO! GO! BUT AT A DISTANCE

Formula One season gets the green light as drivers, teams and fans come to terms with the ‘new normal’

WHEN Lewis Hamilton renews his quest for Formula One supremacy this weekend, it will be against a very different backdrop.

Nearly four months after the season was due to start, Hamilton and his 19 rivals, as well as the teams and fans, will have to come to terms with a “new normal”.

The opening races of the season will, for the first time, be held behind closed doors with no spectators, sponsors, VIPS or guests.

Other changes in F1’s framework include teams having to stay in “bubbles within bubbles”, while armchair fans will notice a new look to the televised coverage.

No longer will Martin

TENNIS FRENCH OPEN

Brundle, the former driver now synonymous with his traditional grid walk, pick the brains of the drivers before they start their engines.

The hectic-but-enthralling exchange between Brundle and the drivers – often moments away from racing – has been axed to ensure social distancing is adhered to.

F1 and chief UK broadcaster Sky have been forced to completely transform the way fans at home are able to watch Grands Prix.

Only Sky’s star-studded presenters – including Brundle and former world champions Damon Hill, Jenson Button and Nico Rosberg – will attend races.

Production, usually overseen in a snazzy tent on-site at circuits, will instead be overseen at Sky’s HQ in Osterley, while presenters face restricted access to the paddock.

The post-race champagnespraying celebrations on the podium have also been axed – although much of the bubbly was wasted anyway.

F1 has yet to confirm details, but expect a formal prizegiving on the track, with distancing between drivers and with trophies already in place rather than being handed over by local dignitaries.

The paddock, often a place for A-list celebrities to mingle, will look very different too.

The palatial team “motorhome” hospitality units will not be used; instead, awnings and tents will be set up behind garages to give team members more space under distancing guidelines.

Logistics will also be different, with the delivery of the cars and freight no longer happening by air, but instead by road.

And anyone travelling to Austria must first test negative for Covid-19 and then take tests every five days – and immediately if they show symptoms – as well as having regular temperature checks.

Most of the media briefings and news conferences will be conducted online, via Zoom or other means. The paddock will be off limits to the few media in attendance.

No motorhome hospitality units, with awnings and tents to be set up behind garages instead.

Teams are restricting the amount of people on the grid from 55 to 40 and at the three-minute mark that number has to drop down to 16.

There will be no podium celebrations after the race. F1 has yet to confirm details but expect a formal prizegiving on the track.

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