Beginners guide to F1: DRS, types of tyres, flags and more

Formula 1 continues to enjoy a surge in popularity with an increasing number of viewers tuning in to watch the pinnacle of motorsport.

An epic title battle between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen in 2021, coupled with Netflix's hit F1 documentary ‘Drive to Survive' have done wonders for the sport's image and means many are giving it a try.

First-time viewers of F1 may be left scratching their heads as to how the sport works and the technical language that accompanies it.

Therefore, we've endeavoured to put together a guide to F1 to make sure everyone watching is up to speed by the time the lights go out.

A brief history of F1

F1 was an evolution of the European Motor Racing Championships that ran in the 1920s and 1930s, coming into existence in 1946 when a new ‘formula' or rules for racing was established. 

The first F1 race, the Turin Grand Prix, was held that year, while the inaugural Drivers' World Championship was staged in 1950. The Constructors' Championship, awarded to the team with the most points at the end of the season, was introduced in 1958.

F1 has gone through several stages of evolution to reach its current iteration with numerous changes to the rules governing safety, engines, car designs and tyres. 

How many teams and drivers are there in F1? 

F1 is currently permitted to have up to 26 cars on the track at one time.

The current edition has 20 drivers competing, two from each of the ten teams involved in the sport.

You can view the 2025 F1 grid here.

How does a Formula 1 race weekend work?

An F1 race weekend takes place over three days with teams traditionally getting two one-hour practice sessions on a Friday to study how the car is performing on a track.

There's a third one-hour practice session on Saturday morning before a one-hour qualifying session for the race itself is held in the afternoon.

Qualifying is split into three phases - Q1, Q2 and Q3 - with the five slowest drivers being eliminated in Q3, five more bowing out in Q2 before the final ten battle it out for pole position. 

Pole goes to the driver who sets the fastest time in Q3 and means they start at the front of the grid on race day, followed by the next fastest driver and so on.

The race itself is then held on Sunday and usually lasts just under two hours. The cars compete over the least number of laps that exceed 305 kilometres, except in Monaco, where the distance is reduced to 260km.

What is a Sprint race?

First introduced in July 2021 for the British Grand Prix, the Sprint has been an exciting addition to the Formula 1 race weekend.

The Sprint is a short race which covers 100km, which is roughly one-third of a typical Grand Prix distance and lasts roughly 30 minutes.

Only select venues are chosen to host a Sprint event, with the tracks selected all boasting excellent overtaking potential. In 2025, there will be six Sprints held across the year.

A Sprint weekend is different to a traditional Grand Prix weekend as Free Practice Two is replaced by a Sprint qualifying session, which sets the grid for the Sprint race. The Sprint itself replaces the Free Practice Three session on the second day, preceding Qualifying for the Grand Prix on the same day.

F1 points system

Drivers are awarded points for finishing in the top 10 of a Grand Prix, with 25 points going to the race winner. There's also an extra point on offer to the driver who sets the fastest lap time during the race.

Points are also awarded for the sprint races with the top eight all awarded points.

The driver with the most points at the end of the season is crowned the Drivers' champion, while the points tallies of a team's two drivers are added together to determine the Constructors' title.

Find out all of the key details on the F1 points system here.

What is DRS?

The Drag Reduction System (DRS) was brought into Formula 1 in 2011 in order to increase the amount of overtaking during a race. 

The system works by opening an adjustable flap on the rear wing of an F1 car which reduces drag and can boost a car's speed by between 10 to 12 kilometres per hour. 

DRS can be used at any time during practice or qualifying but its use is limited during a race. It isn't in operation during the first two laps of a race and a driver must be less than one second behind the car in front for it to become active.

Cars must also be in specific DRS zones on a track for the system to function. Most circuits have two DRS zones, while a few have three.

What types of tyres are used in F1?

The tyres used in F1 are nothing like those fitted to an ordinary car with official tyre supplier Pirelli designing them to last between only 60 to 120 kilometres.

That means teams tend to have to make at least one pit stop per race due to degradation, a term used to describe a tyre losing its performance or grip.

There are six different types of tyres available, ranging from the C0 compound which are the hardest and longest lasting tyres, but also the slowest, to the fast but short-lived C5.

Pirelli will make available three of the six compounds for each race: one hard, one medium and one soft set.

The tyre compounds are colour-coded so viewers can tell the difference with the hardest compound marked in white, the medium compound yellow and the softest tyre red.

There are also two sets of wet weather tyres - green-marked intermediate and blue-marked wet tyres.