Austin hasn’t solved its track limits problem despite improvements to circuit

Formula 1 has made a concerted effort to improve the enforcement of track limits at circuits this year following a spate of controversies in the 2023 season.

Circuits including the Red Bull Ring, Silverstone, Shanghai International Circuit and others have installed new gravel traps, altered kerbs and repainted white lines in an effort to make the track boundaries clearer for drivers.

In some cases this has been a clear success. Last year’s Austrian Grand Prix saw 83 track limits offences; that figure fell to just 16 this year.

Although regarded by many as one of the best permanent circuits to have joined the F1 calendar in recent years, the Circuit of the Americas in Austin has always had a problem with track limits because of the generous nature of its run-offs. Several attempts to deter drivers from running wide have been made in the past, notably after Max Verstappen lost a podium finish when he cut the inside of turn 16 while overtaking Kimi Raikkonen.

But the controversies have continued: Fernando Alonso was infuriated by the behaviour of the Alfa Romeo drivers during the 2021 race. Matters came to a head last year when the stewards admitted they simply couldn’t judge whether drivers had remained within the circuit confines due to the lack of available data.

For F1’s return this year the circuit has benefited from a programme of improvements, part of which was intended to address the track limits problem. White lines have been repositioned at turns nine and 19, and widened at turns 11, 12, 15 and 20. New kerbs have also been installed at turns nine, 10 and 18.

However too little has been done to punish drivers for running wide at corners, and as a result many infringements are still occuring. The number of tracks limits infringements in the sprint race rose from 16 last year to 23 yesterday.

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The majority of these occured at turn 12. Infringements were also noted at four other corners: one, nine, 19 and 20. Strikingly, none were recorded at turn 15, despite George Russell leaving the track at that point on laps nine and ten as he was passed by the two Ferrari drivers. This is because the stewards do not count track limits ‘strikes’ against drivers if they rule they were forced off by a rival.

In some places the alterations appear to have been very successful. Turn six was identified as one particular problem area last year. This has been tackled by narrowing the kerb on the inside, which has the double benefit of making it clearer if a driver has gone off the track and discouraging them from doing it in the first place.

But at many other points on the track the penalty for going off is low. This led to unnecessary incidents when drivers went off while fighting for position: Kevin Magnussen and Yuki Tsunoda were both told by their teams to give up places, and Oscar Piastri collected a penalty.

As other tracks have shown, disputes and penalties such as these can be avoided by giving drivers a strong disincentive to run wide in the first place. The outside of turns one, 12 and 15 in particular would benefit from the narrow strips of gravel which have been added to corners in Shanghai, Red Bull Ring and Hungaroring.

Following last year’s United States Grand Prix the FIA stewards branded Austin’s track limits enforcement “completely unsatisfactory.” Progress has been made but room for improvement remains.

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