In the lead-up to what is so far the hottest Grand Prix of the season, drivers remain unconvinced by the FIA’s special cooling vests. In the past, several sweltering race weekends have taken their toll in Formula 1, prompting the organization to develop special cooling clothing. Unfortunately, these are not yet ready for use at the Saudi Arabian GP.
The 2023 Qatar GP went down in the books as one of the hottest races in modern Formula 1. This had significant consequences. Logan Sargeant had to abandon his race early due to the extreme heat, and Esteban Ocon vomited in his helmet. The heat struck again in 2024; after the Singapore GP, Lewis Hamilton and George Russell had to skip their media obligations. The scorching heat left both feeling unfit to face the press.
Last year, the FIA began developing a special cooling vest to alleviate the heat in the cockpit. The vests are equipped with tubes that pump cooled fluid around the upper body. Drivers can wear these under their racing suits during extremely hot Grands Prix. With temperatures up to 34 degrees Celsius predicted for the race weekend in Saudi Arabia, one would expect these cooling suits to be brought out. However, according to the drivers, the vests do not yet meet the necessary requirements.
‘Not Yet Ready for Use’
In the lead-up to the Bahrain GP, Oscar Piastri was asked during a press conference if he was satisfied with the cooling vests. “No, is the answer,” the McLaren driver laughed. “There are still some adjustments to be made. Personally, they are not yet ready for use, although good work has been done. It’s definitely moving in the right direction.”
Esteban Ocon also does not want to use the cooling vest yet, despite the physical discomforts in previous seasons. “I think it’s a very good initiative by the FIA to solve the problems we had a few years ago in Qatar,” he responded during the same press conference. “It’s a good initiative, but unfortunately I can’t use it at the moment. With the way the seats are designed, there’s no room for a cooling vest. We would have to redesign the entire seat. So yes, they will have to think about it for a while.” Finally, Aston Martin driver Lance Stroll also rejected the cooling vests. According to him, the uncomfortable feeling of an extra vest is not worth the ‘few degrees’ of cooling. “There’s still some work to be done, that’s the reality,” said the Canadian.
