McLaren shatters the world pit stop record in F1
McLaren achieved a feat this weekend and not the least of which. In addition to going on the podium with its two single-seaters, the team of mechanics in the garages did a great job. They achieved the fastest stop in F1 history, despite the new, more complicated rules to manage.
McLaren is in shape and not just the single-seater, nor the drivers. The mechanics are also stronger than ever. They beat the Formula 1 pit stop world record by 0.02 seconds, previously held by Red Bull since 2019. 1.80 seconds to lift the single-seater, change the 4 tires, lower the single-seater and go.
The best pit stop times by team in 2023 up to Qatar
| Team | Driver | Grand Prix | Time | |
| 1 | McLaren | Norris | Qatar | 1.80 |
| 2 | Ferrari | Leclerc | Qatar | 1.93 |
| 3 | Red Bull | Perez | Hungary | 1.98 |
| 4 | AlphaTauri | Tsunoda | Qatar | 2.19 |
| 5 | Aston Martin | Alonso | Qatar | 2.33 |
| 6 | Alpine | Ocon | Spain | 2.34 |
| 7 | Mercedes | Hamilton | Bahrain | 2.40 |
| 8 | Williams | Sargeant | Austria | 2.45 |
| 9 | Haas | Magnussen | Spain | 2.60 |
| 10 | Alfa Roméo | Guanyu | Italy | 2.63 |
A record held since 2019
The record for the fastest F1 pit stop was set by Red Bull Racing in 2019 with Max Verstappen at the Brazilian Grand Prix. The Dutch driver had only had to stop for 1.82 seconds before setting off again with 4 new tires. Since then, no team had improved on this time.
A change in regulation in 2021
In the mid-season 2021 (Belgian GP 2021), following too many issues arising from poorly attached wheels on the F1 cars, the FIA decided to impose a minimum time limit on certain technical and human actions.
Thus, when the pneumatic guns estimate that the wheels are tightened, the minimum time before the light turns green to release the driver is now 0.2 seconds, whereas it was sometimes instantaneous before. Likewise.
This change had had an impact on time. Some actions being done manually again, teams were no longer able to go below the 2 seconds stop. As the teams made progress, McLaren had already stood out in 2022. It had already been the fastest team in the pits, with the best stop of the season made in 1.98 seconds thanks to Daniel Ricciardo in Mexico.
Norris’ lightning pit stop
On Sunday, @McLarenF1 produced the fastest pit stop of ALL TIME! 😱
A ridiculous 1.80s stop for @LandoNorris earns them the @DHL_Motorsports Fastest Pit Stop in Qatar!
2023 leaderboard 👉https://t.co/F2dWiQGk6K#QatarGP #F1 #MomentsThatDeliver pic.twitter.com/AUKUv8VjIs
— Formula 1 (@F1) October 9, 2023
Pit stops during refueling
It was in 2010 that the FIA ended refuelling during the race. Since then, pit stops only involve tyre changes for the most part, and sometimes changes of wings. It is therefore since 2010 that the pit stop has drastically shortened from a minimum of 5-6 seconds depending on the amount of fuel, to less than 3 seconds in 2010.
