The three-engine rule for Formula One in the 2018 season will not change despite several attempts to change it by one particular team boss.
Despite several attempts to change the rule by Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner, the three-engine rule will indeed be in effect in the 2018 Formula One season, as not all of the teams agreed to change it back.
FIA president Jean Todt confirmed today that the rule will stand as a three-engine rule for the 2018 season for that reason. Plus, he also said that the rule isn’t actually a new rule, which will be touched on later in this article in a quote by Todt.
The rule change essentially makes what was a four-engine limit in the 2017 season a three-engine limit in the 2018 season, meaning grid penalties will be assessed for any driver who has his engine changed after exceeding the three-engine limit.
Here is what Todt had to say about not changing the rule, according to Autosport.com.
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"“It is something that was decided. Some people are still thinking, why don’t we have one engine for the whole championship? It is not something that is new. It was decided years ago for 2018. We had some meetings with teams and the way the regulations are made and the governance are made, to decide now to go back to four engines, or let’s go back, we need to be in 100% agreement. And we don’t get 100% agreement, so we are down to three engines.”"
With Ferrari president Sergio Marchionne shooting down the idea of changing the rule back, it would appear to be here to stay, possibly even beyond the 2018 season.
However, not everyone likes the rule. In fact, most people involved in Formula One don’t. In addition to Horner calling the rule “absolutely barking mad”, four-time Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton said that it “sucks”, while McLaren racing director Eric Boullier said that it’s “not Formula One anymore.”
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Will the three-engine rule turn out to be the right move for Formula One in the 2018 season, or will the decision to not keep the limit at four engines come back to bite the sport? The season is set to open up on Sunday, March 25th with the Australian Grand Prix.