Jenson Button believes returning to lighter cars with downforce generated by the floor, rather than the front and rear-wings, is where Formula 1’s future lies.
It’s a proposal that has already been put forward for 2017 when the sport will undergo a radical overhaul aimed at making the cars “five to six seconds” per lap quicker.
Ground effect was last used in the early ’80s, but was then banned, leaving F1 cars reliant on aerodynamics for downforce, primarily from the complex front and rear-wings which have increased in cost ten-fold over the past decade.
Button backs the return to ground effect floors, similar to how GP2 cars generate much of their downforce, as it doesn’t impact overtaking as it creates very little ‘dirty air’.
“It’s good to see a lot of new ideas for the future – I wish they were next year rather than 2017,” the Briton is quoted as saying by Autosport.
“I like the idea of making the cars lighter – they become more nimble, they become less lazy; more mechanical grip is always good for racing, because it doesn’t hurt overtaking.
“And if you’re going to work with downforce it should come from the floor rather than the wings, because you can race closer and fight, and you don’t have as much dirty air from the wings for the car following.”
No firm decisions have been made for 2017, other than the cars being made wider along with wider rear tyres, therefore ground effect remains a possibility.
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