F1 track to test stunning new driver format

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F1 track to test stunning new driver format

The F1 track will host a quite simply astonishing race in the near future

Matthew Hobkinson Lead Editor

F1 Editor & Journalist

Friday 22 December 2023 22:57

The Yas Marina Circuit, home to the Abu Dhabi Formula 1 Grand Prix, is set to host a test for driverless cars ahead of an inaugural race early next year.

For those who argue that the car makes all the difference, not the driver – you're in luck.

That's because this season's curtain-closer, the Yas Marina Circuit, will play host to a series of tests from race cars that are controlled by software algorithms instead of humans.

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The cockpits will be empty as the driverless Dallara Super Formula SF23 cars hurtle round the track at speeds of up to 300km/h.

The Yas Marina Circuit will play host to the driverless car race

These tests are taking place ahead of the Abu Dhabi Autonomous Racing League's debut in April 2024, boasting a prize fund of $2.25 million.

Driverless cars to hit F1 track

Although 10 teams, each with one car only, are set to take part, the technology at hand still has some serious limitations when it comes to wheel-to-wheel racing.

"We know that two [driverless] cars can race well on a track together, what we’ll be pushing to see is can you achieve an outcome where three or four cars are racing competitively against each other?" Dr Tom McCarthy, executive director of operating company ASPIRE, told Reuters.

Fans will be watching on without a driver in the cockpit of the car

"We’re at the frontiers of science on this one. If we got to a point that 10 cars are racing [together] within the next five years I think that would be a huge achievement.

"We see ourselves on a development path, we see a time in the future where you’ll have as many cars lining up on the grid for an autonomous race as a Formula 1 race, but that’s not going to happen today or tomorrow."

Max Verstappen Christian Horner Yas Marina Circuit