Mercedes and Ferrari forced into F1 change after Red Bull request

Ferrari boss Frederic Vasseur has labelled Red Bull's request of the FIA to clampdown on F1 skid blocks as "strange."

The FIA has issued a technical directive prohibiting the use of protective plates over the skid block under the car after Red Bull sought clarification.

The commonly-used technique is to prevent the skid block from wearing excessively from its 10mm level, with excessive wear leading to disqualification if detected - as happened to Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc at the 2023 United States Grand Prix.

Any team is able to request the FIA look into a grey technical matter, with the governing body issuing a technical directive to ensure appropriate changes are made.

Nearly half the grid is understood to have been running the protective plates, with Vasseur, Toto Wolff of Mercedes and Alpine Oliver Oakes all confirming they were some of the teams. 

Discussing the matter, Vasseur hinted that Ferrari had simply made the change to avoid distracting it from its challenge for the constructors' championship - sitting 36 points behind McLaren with three rounds remaining.

"Yes we had to make a change, but we had also confirmation before that the plank was legal from the FIA," Vasseur told media including RacingNews365.

"I think it was the right attitude for us not to fight because I want to stay focused on the championship and not this kind of discussion.

"But the approach was strange."

Mercedes boss Wolff added: "we had to change the way we run the floor as well," whilst Oakes confirmed a "little change" had been made to Alpine's A524 machine.