WHEN CHEATING BECOMES LEGAL! The Story of F1's Second Traction Control Era

In 1999, the FIA began to suspect that a team had been cheating to try and gain an advantage, but the FIA was unable to prove that any cheating had actually been done. So they came up with a way of how to police this cheating, but couldn''t.
So in the end they just said 'ah go on then, use it if you want' and just let them come up with their own traction control systems. So who was supposedly cheating and how did they do it? Let's have a look.
Enjoy! And remember to like and subscribe for more!
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[@PanzerFalcon2232]

I loved the growl the cars made with traction control, it was like holding back a monster

[@AidanMillward]

It was like the blown diffuser in reverse.

[@F-Man]

@@AidanMillwardIt was actually very similar to the off throttle exhaust blowing in essence of what the engine was doing. They were cutting fuel/spark to reduce engine power to keep the rears from breaking traction, essentially turning cylinders into air pumps. This exact same technology was used to keep throttles open on the off throttle EBD cars when the drivers were *not* demanding torque, thus maintaining an energized flow toward the diffuser. Basically the reverse in terms of when it was applied, but very similar technology.

[@palm92]

@@AidanMillwardSpeaking of Honda, their IMSA ARX-06 car does something like this in conjunction with it’s hybrid system.

[@AidanMillward]

@@F-Man didn’t ask but okay. 🤪

[@F-Man]

@@AidanMillward Did say you asked, did I? 🤪🤪

[@elta6241]

The reason why it had to be made legal again was because everyone had been getting around the regulations since 94. Everyone knew Benetton in particular had traction control and everyone then got around it in the same way.

[@Gabbu_Plays]

Some might consider Ayrton Senna's foot to be an early form of traction control in Formula 1.

[@sandalogaming6766]

Especially on the turbo V6 monsters of the 80s. Controlling the revs to not lower the psi so turbo lag doesn’t occur. I know it’s a thing he had since Karting but my god it’s fascinating to notice once you know about it and start noticing

[@nickypoundtown9568]

I honestly don't know how anyone can race a car without Sennas feathering technique

[@sandalogaming6766]

@@nickypoundtown9568 I think all modern F1 drivers do it without the blip. I can’t speak for other drivers though, but I caught myself doing the throttle blip in GT cars in ACC. It’s really fun lmao

[@nickypoundtown9568]

@@sandalogaming6766 it works in go karts and when I used to hill run my prelude back in the day I use it in all videogames too

[@peekaboo1575]

Just gonna leave this here: /watch?v=LId5SKxljqs

[@Batters56]

1:24 Wow. Mosley thought a team had cheated all season, but merely wanted a word with them. All I can think of was did Mclaren lawyers use this interview when Mosley was trying to get them banned from F1 over Spygate?

[@FallingPicturesProductions]

One thing that stands out to me was how when the rules changed to allow TCS for the 2001 season, stateside CART fans gloated over it for obvious reasons. TCS was then legalized for CART in 2002, and it shut those knobs up.

[@charlienolan4409]

Aidan I am nearly 21 and been watching the sport since 08, because I was an obsessed child I know so much about f1 ,more then I should. You are the only account on KZbin who is consistently putting up new info I have not heard before, keep it up best motorsports KZbinr out there

[@gofastandwynn]

I seem to recall the US Broadcasters talking about teams were suspected of hiding launch control in their pit road speed limiters as teams were taking the start with their fuel doors open then closing after taking off.

[@Holanduzo]

2:35 hey, thats a Ferrari F2000 with a Stewart skin!!! and also the later Jordan

[@Iamwolf134]

Really puts today's F1 Grand Prix into perspective, doesn't it? The active suspension system should be unbanned just to keep the porpoising under control.

[@Batters56]

On traction control I seem to remember Martin Brundle slagging it off in every single commentary!

[@AeroGuy07]

I think HHF was an underrated driver.

[@tristandoran601]

He was being labelled the next Michael Schumacher, and with that sort of hype and not really living up to it it had a negative effect on his career as a whole when compared to what The Michael was achieving at that time.

[@sanfordcurtis8242]

Agreed. He wiped the floor with Damon in 1999

[@rossluke901]

​@@tristandoran601also think the problem is he actually up against Schumacher and was getting beat regularly. Where as when vettel was called the next Schumacher he was beating him.

[@LeeePowers]

He was highly rated. While Salo was my favorite Japanese F3000 graduate,Frentzen was way better. More underperformed than underrated.

[@AidanMillward]

@@tristandoran601 Frentzen and Wendlinger were faster than Michael in sports cars but Michael was better in open wheelers. Frentzen also needed a friendly arm round his shoulder to work to his maximum which is why he thrived at Jordan and Sauber but not at Williams as Frank and Patrick weren’t those sorts of people.

[@debe968]

5:50 Heinz said once he must took it off, it was in an German Intevfiew a few months ago. I can't find the qupote right now, but I am bulletproofcertain. Greetings from Germany.

[@Redgolf2]

It'd be great if they all had to use manual gearboxes with a lever again, that'd slow em!

[@TheOz91]

The traction control made it superbly iconic when watching (and listening to) onboards as well as off track. Apart from the screaming V10s, those were the sounds I associated with F1 as a child.

[@jcwebb540]

My memories of standing in the infield at Indy in 2004 are dominated by the sound of the different traction control systems. Every one of them was angry for the first few milliseconds of throttle application.

[@phsycresconquest6636]

If I’m being honest there’s a real case to be made that like the grooved Slicks, traction control made the race cars of that era safer for the drivers as they slowed the cars down

[@kben24]

Grooved-tyres gave F1 cars a very nice & distinctive look…

[@AidanMillward]

I always thought it was counter productive given that they wanted to make the cars harder to drive by reducing rear grip and then giving them back the traction control to make it easier.

[@R4M_Tommy]

TC made the car faster.

[@nickypoundtown9568]

There were many occasions where grooves failed to slow the cars down

[@halofreak1990]

@@nickypoundtown9568 like in damp conditions, where the grooves allowed the tires to disperse some of the water

[@marvinrazor597]

The Honda B&H is standing at my workplace, the Ralfschumacher Motodrom Kartbahn, a carting place. I walk by it nearly every day. Maybe you should visit us if you fancy

[@jdubvdub]

The traction control was very obvious watching the races from the infield at Indianapolis. You could also tell how well Schumacher had his car dialed in as you never saw him struggle with the steering wheel like other drivers.

[@AidanMillward]

I tried to record some onboard footage as in AC you can hear the TC sounds but they didn’t come across as well as I wanted.

[@ayrtonsenna1989luke]

Disagree Schumacher spun in that slow midfield section in 2000 whilst leading

[@jdubvdub]

@@ayrtonsenna1989luke LOL! That’s because he was daydreaming, something he admitted to. 🤣🤣. I was watching him on other parts of the track and I don’t remember seeing him fight the wheel.

[@Lovecars1218]

@@ayrtonsenna1989lukeyeah that’s because traction control was introduced from Spain 2001 on, so his car didn’t had Tc

[@fam.hunger5244]

You should read some technical books about F1 of that time. ALL teams emulated traction control in one way or the other. But it was mostly done in a legal way, with things called "twin throttles", very clever electronic differentials and very completely legal engine mapping. The only team that actually used an illegal TC was Jordan. And by the way - TC is forbidden for a very long time - how often do you see a F1 car with over 1000HP spin their wheels??? So do all of todays cars cheat and use TC? No. Electronic traction control, twin throttle and sophisticated engine mapping and legal systems predicting wheel spin more or less emulate a traction control. And these systems started to be developed in the mid and late 90's already. And Ferrari, by the way, lead the way with these systems. They invented things like twin throttles and sophisticated electronic differentials (even if Williams and Benetton started a few months before them). I would advise you to do some research about F1s electronic differentials and read Peter Wrights Book "Under the Skin of the Championship Winning F1-2000" were it gets explained how Ferrari developed some very clever but totally legal systems for traction but had nothing to do with traction control. Not at all. Its all well known today (if you just read some really good technical books, written by engineers, not journalists with no clue) and gets explained very well. Even the system of the Benetton in 1994 is well known today and got explained. It was no traction control at all. It used the sensor every car had to "tune" the traction of the B194. Every Engine needs to be able to correct fuel and ignition because of ambient conditions (lambda sensor in "normal cars), so F1 engineers were always allowed to sense atmospheric pressure so hence you had all you had needed to modify the limit rate of acceleration of the engine in any gear. The atmospheric pressure sensor that measured the pressure was in the airbox of every car. So with some track testing one could use the way pressure changes with speed in the airbox to determine that, if the pressure was "X" above the ambient level seen at the start of the race, then the car was likely to be in a certain gear. To refine that process you just needed to know the RPM (another purely engine parameter) to have a traction control without being a traction control. This worked like this : it was achieved via spark cuting. Input signals were engine RPM measured very frequently so that engine acceleration could be measured (with legal hall effect sensors every team used) and atmospheric pressure (very accurate sensor that every team had, too) so that delta pressure could be assessed. Engine acceleration was limited in stages based on delta ("atmospheric") pressure. The driver would be sent out with the system "neutralised" to see what the track/tyres could handle. This would change if gear ratios changed (different gear ratio would require a different engine acceleration limit). The system would the be programmed with a number of stages of engine acceleration to suit the conditions. As conditions changed (track "rubbering in" etc.) the parameters would be tuned. During a race the conditions would change rendering the system more or less useful. If the tyres went off badly or it became wet the system would not control traction. If the track got better and better, the system would cut too much power - the grip available would allow more "engine" acceleration. That was how the Benetton System of 1994 worked and its well know today. Not much to do with a traction control. But a clever and legal system that other teams copied in the years following. And systems like this got further developed and got more sophisticated. Like i said - read some good (but expensive books from F1 Engineers). And forget all this crap journalists and fans are talking...its all crap. Most teams, especially Benetton and Ferrari used very clever but legal systems. A lot of politics were involved in these days especially by someone called Ron, who always called the teams who beat him cheats. But most of it was politics and psychological warfare and no team except of Jordan in 1999 used a TC. It was all very clever and legal systems. The fact alone that nothing changed after the introduction of traction control as far as the competitiveness of the teams is concerned should have made that clear and made it clear even then. Because everything remained the same, either no one used traction control or everyone did. And indeed, after Jordan in 1999, no one did. And finally - there was no driver who did fight more with the wheel than Schumacher. If you seeiously say you did not see him fight the wheel, then you have no clue about Schumacher, sorry.

[@wabba67]

This TC ear showed how little control FIA had over the sport. The shared ECU should've been introduced way earlier than 2008.

[@DeckardWill]

Jean Alesi famously refused to use traction control in the Prost - he hated it, and raced with it turned off. Though apparently less due to being against TC in general... and more down to considering it pretty crap in the Prost. After his move to Jordan, he used it and declared it a lot better.

[@Olivyay]

Bit weird that they couldn't use Ferrari's one as they used a Ferrari engine that year and it was the ECU that implemented traction control. I doubt Ferrari's traction control was actually bad.

[@peekaboo1575]

@@Olivyay Ferrari didn't have a lot of love for Prost after '91 so I bet there was something to do with that.

[@Olivyay]

@@peekaboo1575 But they still loved money enough to sell him engines. 😅

[@RANDOMZBOSSMAN1]

​@@OlivyayAt a stupid high price tbf haha

[@DeckardWill]

@@RANDOMZBOSSMAN1 At a CRIPPLINGLY high price, yes! Ferrari engine and transmission I think it was, from the prior year.

[@sh-spectrum409]

I think you've brought this up before but going into 1999 the number of grooves in the front tyres had increased from 3 to 4 and Damon just couldn't get along with the new spec tyres. Realising that Frentzen could make them work from the word go and was getting immediate results, Damon just basically gave up on F1.

[@chrisreadman4282]

I agree. Certain rules seem to suit other drivers more than others. Look at 2010 and 2011. Between Webber and Vettel. Mark just never could make them tyres work. The grooved tyres many drivers just never where the same compared tot eh slicks.

[@AidanMillward]

He also had the realisation that he was past it when everyone was tripping over each other into turn one and he thought “why is everyone in a hurry?” He was done after 1996 to be fair. He’d won the championship, rescued the family name, he’d done all he had to do. He was just making bank after that. I’ve heard he’s a nice guy, but can come across as being abrasive and difficult. Might just be the dry humour he got from his dad.

[@sh-spectrum409]

@@AidanMillward Shame he never got a proper chance to defend his title but his fate at Williams was sealed after his nightmare 1995 season.

[@AidanMillward]

@@sh-spectrum409 he might have done if he’d gone to McLaren but Ron was only going to pay him if he won a race.

[@sh-spectrum409]

@@AidanMillward The more I hear about hear about Ron Dennis, the more I think he’s a tight-arsed berk!

[@panvar8469]

TC would be handy nowadays with the wet races and the hyrbrid power units giving instant torque... Although the problem as drivers said is the spray,I believe that TC needs to come back only for wet races...

[@halofreak1990]

Spray is one of the problems, yes. Another is that the wet tire is between five and seven seconds a lap slower than the intermediate tire, rendering it basically useless for racing, despite its ability to clear water.

[@georgethomas7814]

I was there... before and after the traction control thing. My dream car was something like the V8 Holden HT, HG Monaro. By the late 1990's I could afford one. Sadly they were very hard to find by then. Like most things in the 1990's F1 was changing fast. Most of those changes found their way into road cars. (so I'm told) I was no racing driver and I needed all the help I could get from a car. Most cars were still manual change, only just got ABS (that's some kind of brake control) and everything was about HP and torque? Turbo's and superchargers were additions to an engine that increased power and torque to mind-blowing levels of fuel consumption. Then suddenly F1 stopped using V10s ( I had dreamed of owning something like a V12 Jaguar), V12s were on the way out and then the crazy high rev V8s were gone too. Along came the V6 turbo era, increasing numbers of automatic gearboxes and computer chips that turned the car off when you stopped at the lights. All were designed to save fuel, and most came from F1 innovations. Most of this I did not care about. Before and After the late 90's I watched F1 because it was like a modern chariot race. F1 is synonymous with change and controversy, speed and suspense, but most of all it's about development and death. At times F1 can be very hard to watch but it has always been a place to find the next development.

[@Glassjar34]

Jordan's TC did need to be turned off. Hill's failure to turn it off caused the turn 2 pile up in Nurburgring 1999 and then HHF's DNF later in the race was caused by him forgetting to turn off the TC after his pit stop.

[@GreggCesaroni]

I’ve heard the traction in person when Ferrari came to Daytona with Corsa Clienti. The sound they make is awesome! Particularly with the V10’s. Thunderous.

[@gdogg3710]

TC started out as a launch control device at Ferrari under Steve Nichol that Prost forgot to turn off in the wet somewhere (might have been Imola 1990) and was two seconds a lap faster than everyone, with a horrifically misfiring engine…

[@chrisdavidson911]

depends on how pedantic you want to be, steam trains had it lol

[@EAGYSL]

Never heard about it. Do you have an article about it?

[@db-mp2of]

If you ain't cheatin, you ain't tryin

[@_NoDrinkTheBleach]

Like any other tech that helped make the cars faster, the banning of it didn't slow down the cars for long. I feel like if TC makes the cars safer, it should still be legal. If it only serves to make the drivers bolder, then perhaps it shouldn't be.

[@smith2781]

Redbull we’re still using TC until 2013. A few drivers commented that the rumble of the exhaust blowing the defuser would carry on as the car accelerated out the corner. When other would stop as soon as the car started accelerating again.

[@cameronkeen7551]

A story time episode about the RB9 would be interesting 👌

[@reptongeek]

I got my copy of Damon's book and he says you had to turn off the system after Lap 1 and after a pit stop otherwise it would turn off. Sometimes though it didn't work as Damon retired on Lap 1 When Charlie Whiting heard what they had done after this race his response was 'very clever, Don't do it again'

[@AidanMillward]

You mean the bit I quoted in the video? 😅

[@disclaimer.imjokin]

He's made you look a right twat here reptongeek

[@minibus9]

awesome video, traction control era was cool, as is non tractioncontrol era, each are cool in their own ways

[@OperationFoxley19441]

Renault/Benetton got it right by the end of the 2001 season, it was a good technology because what is designed in F1 normally ends up in our road cars.

[@brandonrenwick9125]

I liked the TC era. You could easily tell who had a good handling car, watching the TV onboards. A few blips of TC out of the corners or just a solid TC you knew it was handling like poo. I didnt feel like it made the racing less genuine.

[@bigslydoc]

I hated it. The cars just sounded terrible on acceleration. They raspy noise was awful. It was amazing again when it was banned.

[@ibex485]

I remember watching the 2001 Brazilian GP (two races before Spain) and seeing Alesi's Prost misfiring like mad out of the slow corners, just like 1993 but far more visible thanks to the high engine-cover exhaust exits on the Ferrari engine. There was no doubt in my mind that it was running traction control. The news of an un-named team running traction control the previous year became widely known around that time and I remember someone at the FIA saying it wasn't Ferrari (naturally everyone's prime suspect), which in my mind just confirmed that it was Ferrari. Such was the way of Formula 1 and the FIA back then, Bernie was so desperate for Ferrari to win for commercial reasons.

[@AidanMillward]

“They banned our brake pedal on the basis our car wasn’t red enough” Ron Dennis.

[@ibex485]

@@AidanMillward LMAO.... xD Schumacher runs Montoya off the track in Malaysia and Montoya gets the penalty. (Can't remember if that was 2001 or 2002.)

[@AidanMillward]

@@ibex485 and people laugh when it’s suggested. 😅

[@RANDOMZBOSSMAN1]

​@@ibex485It was 2002 haha even the Michael was surprised he got a penalty

[@jacekatalakis8316]

I do wonder actually if there was any crossover of info from CART to F1 as far as running and more to the point, hiding TC. It was said in 2003 by both CART and Paul Tracy that everyone was at it from 94-01 and it was an open secret that nobody would talk about. but more to the point it was the car makers pushing it and making sure teams ran it. So I wonder if something similar happened in F1 with the apparent midfield teams as well given Jordan had Honda as did BAR, Ford had Stewart and bought it out to be Jag, and Merc were with McLaren at the time, and Toyota would enter in 2002

[@Olivyay]

7:55 are you sure it's not the other way around? Because I distinctly remember reading an article on the Ferrari steering wheel (that had like two times the number of buttons and switches as competitors at the time) in an F1 magazine and it said there was one button to automatically downshift from the current gear to a set gear, often 2nd, for slow corners at the end of straights (they used La Source as an example). This was about the F310B in 1997. If you mean "really automatic", then I understand it was not the same, as this was more "programmed multi-downshift". Oh btw at 2:35 the white Stewart livery makes really obvious the fact that the ~2000 Ferrari body wasn't the best looking on the grid, especially the sidepods. 🙂 PS: very interesting anecdote about Damon and the 1999 Nurburgring start! On the TV feed you see him very slow after the crash but I always thought it was a consequence and not the cause, but now that you've told about that it is obvious he had exactly the same problem at the exact same spot on track as happened to Frentzen after the first pitstop.

[@kallo182]

I read F1 Racing Magazin in 2007 and they posted Telemetrie Dates from Jenson Button test driving for the 2008 Season. He drove 10 Laps with TC, came into the Pits, and drove another 10 Laps without TC. And surprise surprise, He was not faster with TC. Wich back than in the early, mid 2000s a lot of people belive that TC would make a Car faster. There are enough people today who think that TC make a Car faster. Specialy when they talk about the 1994 season 😂.

[@halofreak1990]

It depends on your level of skill with the throttle and track conditions whether it'll make you faster or not. I have no real life experience with traction control, but in video games, I tend to be faster without, and in the F1Mania 2006 mod for F1 Challenge '98 - '02, I made plenty of use of the TC Override button to momentarily turn the traction control off when coming out of corners, as once the car had settled on corner exit, it only slowed down the acceleration.

[@MWPompert]

What always stood out for me was the Honda powered Jordan and BAR with the TC allowed were the only ones that still sounded like before without the garbled engine sounds on corner exit. Coincidence?

[@tomislavblazevic2742]

Loved the sound and everything. It was a good thing.

[@NonFlyiingDutchman]

I follow a lot of sports including F1, athletics and road cycling. I always seem to have watched and marvelled at the time and taken the performances at face value only to find out years later it wasn't all that it seemed. It's quite depressing that now I'm always conflicted when watching a dominant performance as to wether it's legitimate or not

[@peekaboo1575]

TCS simply should not be allowed on any form of competitive motorsport, ever.

[@mahiru20ten]

Yet they are allowed for GT3 racing. Same with ABS.

[@peekaboo1575]

@@mahiru20ten Indeed they are, and I think it's a pity.

[@whodeany99]

The first story was definitely Benetton, why... Because Flavio.

[@anidiotinaracingcar4874]

The BAR (at least) had a sort of ABS: the ECU was modifying engine breaking depending when it detected under rotation of the wheels

[@squeakers27]

I've always wanted an IS200/300 saloon myself for years, really want one in this colour with those wheels but with the black interior and has to be a manual. Only unfortunate thing is that, they used to be really cheap only just a couple years ago but are really starting to go up but excellent chill lap although the gopros were trying their best to not work today 😂

[@ramirogarcia1967]

This used to be my job in f1.. Effectively I was driving the car!! 😂😂😂

[@espenbaklid3178]

5:20 What race is Damon Hill referring to in this quote? Whenever I hear the words "Diniz" and "roll", I immediately think of Nurburgring 1999, but according to Hill's decription, this can't be the race mentioned - in 1999, Diniz raced for Sauber, and it was Fisichella, in trying to avoid Hill's slow Jordan in the first corner, who punted Diniz into that roll.

[@RANDOMZBOSSMAN1]

Think Damon just messed up what car Diniz was in because that incident was definitely the 1999 European GP

[@Feuerbasis]

We had some decent seasons in the later stages of the 2nd TC era Hard to believe Alonso/Hamilton happend in this period. Schuchmacher/Ferrari got beaten Truth to be told - I always liked no TC Hakkinen way more in the late 90's in Q - powering out of corners like the damm car was stolen :D

[@sulphurous2656]

Sometimes I wonder if things would have played out differently had traction control never been allowed in Formula 1.

[@TheUntitled100]

According to Sam Michael, Jordan's launch control system was only used in race starts and he felt that it wasn't worth much either. There's a contradiction within Jordan members over Heinz Harald Frentzen's electrical failure at the Nurburgring. Mark Gallagher says Heinz and/or Sam forgot to cancel the system, but Sam says it triggered itself after the pitstop.

[@AidanMillward]

There’s reports that Sam was shouting over the radio to HH that he had to turn it off, but Frentzen was too busy driving to listen.

[@GaryWagers]

Is it a good thing or a bad thing? It depends on whether you view F1 as a competition of drivers or car builders. Part of me wants to see the most advanced cars in the world going around the track, but if F1 went in that direction, we'd be seeing AIs in the cockpit within the year, and Newey would win everything hands down. I don't know where the line should be. But I do have fond memories of this period of F1, since I started watching the sport in 2003.

[@FallingPicturesProductions]

Based on how slow progress is with the Indy autonomous challenge, I doubt AI would be the faster then human drivers within even three years.

[@F1Krazy]

I know the loophole Benetton were using in '94 was that it was illegal to use traction control, but not illegal to have it, and the FIA couldn't prove whether their traction control system was actually being used or not. Did they close that loophole, and Jordan (or whoever) found a different one?

[@Olivyay]

Willem Toet explained Benetton's 1994 traction control in a video interview with Driver61, they were using a rule allowing for measurement of piston acceleration to prevent engines destroying themselves if throttled suddenly in neutral or on a big bump or kerb etc. Benetton designed look-up tables with that piston acceleration and RPM and the air intake pressure to guess what gear they were in and limit power depending on the gear. So it wasn't as efficient as the legalized traction control of 2001-2007, and used a loophole in the rules, but was effectively a form of traction control. He didn't say in the interview if the loophole was closed for 1995, but they changed engine supplier so maybe it was something Ford had come up with?

[@AidanMillward]

@@Olivyay yeah Benetton were using some sort of air pressure thing to do it. It’s the launch control that is the crux of the illegal car stuff.

[@andyk8232]

Just read Damon's biography the other week. You remember correctly. That is pretty mich what he wrote.

[@AidanMillward]

Someone on Twitter took a picture of the page for me so I was able to copy it in 😅

[@Denilson24]

Hill also retired a healthy car at Hockenheim

[@fastdamo]

I seem to remember that during the start of the hybrid cars that the teams were using the hybrid motor power as the traction contol and Redbull started it and the onboard camera used to get interference under acceleration which is what gave it away.............or was that the 2012 thing? I thought it was after the engine map ban?

[@pibil8052]

went to Canada GP during TC days, and cars especially Merc sounded awful- sounded like misfiring two stroke.

[@sandmaenchen]

No disrespect towards the Iceman, but I find it peculiar that the strongest years of Raikkonen in F1 coincide with the era of traction control, both in the McLarens and the Ferrari of 2007. Did he figure out some optimal way to use it with his driving style or did his driving style depend on it more strongly than the other drivers'? He was often considered the fastest driver on the field in those McLarens, and after the traction control era, those moments of brilliance were considerably fewer. Or did he not just try as hard after getting the championship?

[@danielpooley7148]

Yes dude you have said it in the nurbring video hill said in his book he had to turn it off after the start

[@Trojan7575]

U forgot to mention blown out rear double diffusers. Lol mosley had the sense to understand that the #FIA had lost the ability to check all data points then starting to be generated in binary codes

[@sultanabran1]

the cars sounded awesome coming out of corners. all that misfiring was rad. however, seeing drivers floor it out of corners instead finessing it made me want to see it banned. the cars sounded rad though

[@alexlazebat839]

but there was no launch control on that car hence 2001 Austria, i suppose 2001 Malaysia formation lap was weird overheated electrics?

[@F_r_a_n_y]

Has anyone else just quit like Damon? Pretty savage considering people would give an arm and a leg just to sit in an F1 car

[@DarkLordDiablos]

Personally I think there should be no rules on innovation and they should let them go wild since the teams usually find a way around the rules to begin with.

[@tturi2]

were they torque management or ignition timing limiting?

[@aidansmith1354]

Was it true that in 2003 the cars on the start grid had launch control operated by the engineers in the pit lane? And if so can we get a video on that please?

[@RANDOMZBOSSMAN1]

Launch control was legal in 2003 but believe it was only driver operated

[@macnahamic]

Wait… is Damon referring to the accident at the Nürburgring in 99? Diniz drove for Sauber in that year, not Arrows. I’m genuinely confused.

[@AidanMillward]

He definitely says Arrows. Don't know why, but he does.

[@eamonahern7495]

Schumacher and Ferrari dominated during that era.

[@Oblivion9873]

I dont think TC had a major impact on the racing in that period and it made the engines sound even cooler. Overall positive imo

[@VonBlade]

Anything that allows less capable drivers to find success is bad. But then I'm firm in my belief that a F1 steering wheel should be allowed 3 buttons only. They can be for anything you want, but you're only allowed three buttons. Want to change maps, give up the radio button. Want a radio as well? Hope you're good at the pit lane speed limit. Want pit lane and radio? Don't stall then. Etc etc.

[@AidanMillward]

Schumacher won at least five of his seven titles with it. Schumacher fraud confirmed. 😅

[@F-Man]

What if I told you that buttons don’t have to be solid state? 👀

[@VonBlade]

@@F-Man What if I told you I don't run the FIA so they won't listen to me, but if I did they'd be a toggle only, and no you're not allowed to press two at the same time to get more options :)

[@VonBlade]

@@AidanMillward I get what you mean, if everyone has got it the cream will rise etc. The current grid is almost wholly good drivers, whereas most of the older ones were 2 great, 6 good, and a bunch of chumps. Paging Bertrand Gachot...

[@ayrtonsenna1989luke]

No mention of Williams in this entire video the finger was actually pointed at them with the most powerful BMW engine on the grid and their sudden rise to the top. Button's rookie performance at Spa in the wet that year or Suzuka again that had damp conditions...... Can't have any anti Williams though can we ;) ....Anyway no evidence it was Jordan but you mentioned Jordan a lot in the video and even have them as the image for the video which I think is unfair. Lastly the reason why Stewart had better results was the powerful Ford V10 for 1999 made a huge difference in pace and many crazy races that year in 1999 that blessed Jordan and Stewart with good results.

[@nikitamedvedev4696]

99 Stewart had a very good pace, at times rivaling Jordan (3rd best car by a mile in that year), but was pretty unreliable and at times inconsistent in certain tracks (Barichello retired with engine 3 times while being ahead of Frentzen). With Williams in 99 they were only carried by Ralf (who was actually consistent during that year) and in 2000 while having a powerful engine they were pretty much lucky that Jordan was blowing left, right and center that allowed to carry them 3rd constructor place.

[@F1Krazy]

Why would he have mentioned Williams? Were they suspected of using traction control? Your comment doesn't make that clear.

[@ayrtonsenna1989luke]

@@F1Krazy Go watch San Marino GP 2001, highlights are currently on here by 'big zeddie'. Anyway Ralf famously made an AMAZING start from p3, no wheelspin, everyone else around him apart from his team mate had wheelspin off the line, the run down to t1 at Imola isn't that long either, Montoya also made up positions. Anyway Ralf no wheel spin, perfect get away from p3 to p1 on a short distance to t1, both Williams having rather clean and very good starts often 2000-2001 before LC was legalized at Spain 2001. Shame there is a Jordan as the display picture for this video, again there are many posts and talk online that it was Williams who were strongly linked to using LC which was illegal at that point. To ADD after testing during '00 and early '01 Williams were having difficulty with the Soft Michelin tyres even lasting a stint - TC definitely helped them last, there was typically a MASSIVE DROP off after just a few laps of lightening pace with the Michelin tyres and there is strong evidence out there that start of '01 Williams were using TC. Also to add during this period Williams were classed as a 'mid-field' team having placed 5th out of 11 in the constructors championship one year. I was a big, big fan of Aiden and his channel but his Williams bias really effects content he is going to put out if he is only going to tell half a story and tell it in a pro Williams fashion like he did on his Silverstone '94 video etc....

[@mahiru20ten]

I wish they allow traction control and anti lock brakes back. These things are allowed in GT racing, specifically in GT3, and has allowed us to see bold and close racing.

[@DjDolHaus86]

Yeah but that's also down to the nature of the cars. GT cars aren't as reliant on downforce as F1 so you're not at a massive disadvantage as soon as you get close to another car and if you have a bit of a bump which costs some bodywork you're not suddenly losing 5 seconds a lap. You see the same thing in formula E, they're not completely reliant on downforce so it's possible to stay in someones shadow for lap after lap and if you lose a bit of bodywork the car is still able to put in competitive time.

[@CyanRooper]

"Mosley also said that there is beginning to be signs of a culture of cheating in Formula 1." When has there never? lol

[@blekenbleu]

Mid/rear engine cars are easier to drive than front engine and thus should also be banned as driver aids, along with carbon brakes. MFGA.. oh wait, F1 was supposed to be something about technology? Seriously, a minimum weight requirement is worse than silly.

[@mahiru20ten]

The latter also applies to pro cycling. The minimum weight requirement is kinda ehh for the tech we have right now. We could easily have race bikes weighing under 6.8 kg that lasts long enough to take a beating with current technology.

[@RANDOMZBOSSMAN1]

​@@mahiru20tenAlso the banning of certain frames after 1999 who know how crazy TT rigs would have gotten to in cycling today lol

[@robertstone9988]

I know there cheating, calls we are cheating and there beating us.

[@BLKBRDD]

The sound was something to experience but the racing was meh

[@stonioali2397]

today I'm early😂😂🎉

[@DiscGolfLeagueMVP]

No idea how or why but my KZbin decided to unsub from you on its own. Beware of this

[@Scoots1994]

I think it's up to the scrutineering to find anything outside of the rules ... if they don't find it it wasn't cheating. What bugs me is when they find something that is not covered by the rules and then they bend the rules to ban it.

[@Glassjar34]

It's funny how he was saying a mid-table team was cheating, Ferrari already had TC and flexing floors in 99 and dodgy turning vanes, but all were ignored on their way to the constructors championship, ably aided by some very suspect stewarding decisions.

[@Durbanite2010]

I think ABS and traction control are good things to have on any car, especially a racing car - I see them more as necessary safety items. The way F1 cars burn through tyres under a brake lock-up shows ABS should be used - it's not safe for the driver, having one tyre be damaged from braking, which does negatively affect the car's handling and performance.

[@blacksterangel]

I was in my early years of watching F1 when traction control and launch control was allowed. I didn't care if it makes the driver's job easier as long as it improves safety and racing. I always hate it when a governing body of a sport ban technology in favor of human error as the human error was "part of a human sport". I hate it when Sepp Blatter rejected VAR, and I hate it when Max Mosley banned traction control.

[@cosmo1084]

cringe video sry. takes to long to get to the point with useless info who was or barely wasnt a midfielder 24 years ago, accuses teams of cheating with zero proof, gets in no specifics at all..

[@AidanMillward]

Didn’t accuse anyone of cheating whatsoever.

[@cosmo1084]

@@AidanMillward sorry i was too harsh. came back to say this

[@disclaimer.imjokin]

You say sauber were bad with dnfs.. but in 2000 jordan were borderline a joke if i remember rightly... not pace wise... but they never finished a race

[@AidanMillward]

Barrichello in 1997 had his performance humbled by that 2nd in Monaco.