F1 technical boss, Ross Brawn, believes that less data from practice sessions could lead to improved racing come Sunday afternoon.

In his post-US GP debrief, the Briton points to the lack of dry running on Friday, which, combined with different weather conditions on Saturday and Sunday, left the teams heading into the unknown come the race, which in turn led to one of the best, most unpredictable races of the season.

"The three drivers on the podium crossed the line within the same three seconds," said Brawn. "They all ran different tyre strategies, through choice in the case of Raikkonen and Hamilton, and by necessity for Verstappen who started from the penultimate row of the grid.

"That's unusual in Formula One, where the level of sophistication in terms of simulation and strategy is so high that one doesn't usually get such a variance, especially when it involves the top three teams," he admitted. "This was probably down to the fact that no one had been able to run dry weather tyres on Friday as the track was wet throughout the three hours of practice. That meant the teams had less data than usual on which to base their race plans, and thus the margin for error increased.

"So, does less data produce a better show?" he continued. "It's definitely more uncertain and therefore another topic for discussion when looking at ways to make our sport even more exciting, from the first lap to the last, as was the case in Austin."

While it was the weather that compromised dry running on Friday, Brawn is clearly looking at the option preferred by the sport's owners, that of restricting track time either by dint of reducing the length of the practice sessions or scrapping Friday running entirely.

"To use a football metaphor, when two teams play perfectly, a nil-nil draw is the logical conclusion," said Brawn, a die-hard Manchester United fan. "In Formula One, when the simulations are all worked out to the smallest detail, then they all converge towards the same best possible strategy."

However, with a number of teams against the idea of two-day race weekends, Brawn admits that less actual track time would merely cause the bigger teams to spend more time and money on simulations and the like.

"I think you will just have more simulations and more computers running in the background, trying to emphasise how to put the car on track," he admitted. "But the more you limit track time the more variability you have."

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READERS COMMENTS

1. Posted by Mad Matt, 24/10/2018 12:27

"We had a tyre war before. It just divided the filed into two classes and cost a fortune for the tyre manufacturers. It certainly didn't promote closer racing.

For closer racing we can either reduce practice/testing to make it more of a lottery, perhaps randomly sprinkle the track with water, reverse grids etc or we can go for aero regulations which allow the cars to run closer together without needing to be 5 second a lap quicker.

Other formulae manage to have close racing with one tyre manufacturer so I don't think it's a key point."

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2. Posted by imejl99, 24/10/2018 8:47

"Finally admitting it is all down to the tire wear... artificial racing introduced by asking Pirelli to spend fortune to develop rubber that lasts for 100 - 200 km, denting their own reputation with regular car customers?

Why not allow teams to go whatever tire manufacturer they want, make partnership and go racing? Regulator only needs to give tire spec and requirements. We could have tire F1 competition... and more interesting racing. Imagine Red Bull Bridgestone, or Haas Yokohama, Renault Michelin... "

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3. Posted by gasconboy, 24/10/2018 8:24

"As Liberty says it is all for the fans, they didn't get much of a show on Friday and no doubt paid a lot of money for the privilege. Less chat between pits and car would be a start and as for the tyre situation;; how silly to hand out the champions cup after the Australian GP. Lets have Michelin and Hankook involved too."

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4. Posted by TokyoAussie, 24/10/2018 4:34

"I hope this is NOT the start of some new "idea" from Liberty. Yes, less track time amounts to greater unpredictability. If that's the thinking, go one step further and eliminate all track time to make things even less predictable. One thing that is predictable with track time eliminated is that track spectators will have nothing to watch, and no reason to pay up. "

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5. Posted by Elf Team Tyrrell, 23/10/2018 21:01

"Why on earth did they ever stop the teams making engines in whatever configuration they wanted to. V12, Flat12, V8 etc.? "

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6. Posted by Jet Jockey, 23/10/2018 19:48

"Oh... I forgot to say, remove the stupid engine and transmission limitations (in the process iliminating the penalties), in other words no limits to how many can be used during the championship.

Stop changing the rules every so many years, especially the ones around the propulsion system and their complexity and that way you will reduce the cost to the manufacturers and other teams that buy from them."

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7. Posted by Jet Jockey, 23/10/2018 19:41

"Brawn is losing it too... it must be an FIA and F1 management type disease.

Take away the stupid fuel limits, take away the stupid tire rules, and remove the downforce that creates all sorts of problems for passing and I’ll guarantee you the racing will be a lot more exciting!"

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8. Posted by Canuck, 23/10/2018 18:23

"If they take away Friday practice, therefore reducing the weekend to 2 days, will they reduce the hosting fees? I think they may reconsider their opinion if that will be the demand of host cities/countries."

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9. Posted by nonickname, 23/10/2018 18:03

"Less importance of pit stops. Make them mandatory 10 seconds :) Only come in if your really need to.Less tyre crap."

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10. Posted by Elf Team Tyrrell, 23/10/2018 15:17

"Less than 5 mechanics working on a car during a pit stop"

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11. Posted by nonickname, 23/10/2018 14:43

"Yes less could be more.
Less idiotic remarks like the current one from Brawn.
Less down-force.
Less weight for the car.
Less tech feedback from the pit wall.
Less stupid penalties from the clerk of the course
Less than 1800 people in teams like Mercedes.
Less budget for 3 top teams."

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Brawn believes less track time will produce better racing

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