If the start of a Formula 1 race is considered one of the most spectacular moments of a Grand Prix, it is even more so when it takes place at night. The first round of the World Championship, held last Saturday at the Sakhir International Circuit (Bahrain) when the sun had already set, had an extra attraction coinciding with the start of the cars: the dazzling spectacle of light and color provided by the sparks emitted by racing cars.
These sparks are normal in Formula 1 cars, especially since 2015, when the International Automobile Federation (FIA) changed the regulations and recovered a feature in force in the 1990s. As then, the lower part of the cars, From the rear to almost the front wheels, it is covered by a titanium sheet. This piece, known as a skid block and which is not found on street vehicles, has a double objective: to prevent the car from rubbing against the asphalt on the straights and to maintain a minimum height with the asphalt.
As we could see in the television images, the sparks released by the Formula 1 cars are more frequent at the start than at other times of the race. This is because at the beginning of the test, when the cars are placed on the starting grid, the cars have a completely full fuel tank.
At that moment, the weight of the car is much greater than in other phases of the race, so the car is closer to the asphalt. When the iron that covers the car at the bottom rubs against the surface, sparks occur. It normally occurs at the start and also in some specific maneuvers during the race, especially if the car still has the initial fuel tank or has just passed through the pits to refuel.
Despite the spectacular nature of the sparks generated by Formula 1 cars, they are generally not large or hot enough to cause fires. The sparks come mainly from friction between the ground and the skid block, which is made of titanium, a heat-resistant material. The design of the piece also minimizes any risk of fire.
However, if sparks come into contact with flammable materials outside the runway, such as dry grass or spilled fuel, there could be a potential fire hazard. For this reason, Formula 1 circuits usually have safety measures in their design and specific protocols to address any incident that may arise.
The pilots have had to get used to this festival of lights and colors that, although spectacular for the spectators, are annoying for them. The Spanish Carlos Sáinz, fourth placed in the Bahrain Grand Prix last Saturday, already declared in 2015, after a race at that Sakhir circuit, that sparks are not “at all pleasant” for the drivers. “They will look very good on TV, but for the drivers they are not pleasant at all. They glare and the particles go into your visor.”
On the contrary, that same day, Jenson Button, who could not take part in the race and followed it as a spectator, was hypnotized by the spectacle of the start. “I love sparks,” the British pilot then wrote in a message posted on his social networks.