Ask Gary: What's wrong with 2017 regs?
GARY ANDERSON answers your questions on ground effect, whether Ralf Schumacher deserved his Formula 1 chance, ideas for 2017 rule changes and the advantages of inexperienced drivers
I can see why you think the proposed rule changes for 2017 won't have the desired effect, but I thought a chunk of the 5-6s improvement was supposed to come from the reintroduction of ground effect. You would also get greater traction in corners, meaning faster exits onto straights, and as ground effect is a more efficient way of obtaining downforce, it would result in a lower drag coefficient of the car, meaning the top speed of the cars on straights will be faster still. This, combined with stickier tyres and a wider track, would surely result in a formula that rewards balls and does not inhibit close racing? Or am I misled?
James Tregellis, via email
James, you are right - the majority of this laptime would have to come from the extra downforce and extra top speed. What I was saying was that it needs a lot to achieve that five- or six-second improvement.
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