NASCAR Cup Series

F1 drops ban on team orders next season

Published Dec. 13, 2010 12:00 a.m. ET

foxsports

Formula One's governing body dropped its ban on team orders Friday, making it legal next season for a team to instruct one of its drivers to let a teammate pass.

Following a meeting of its World Motor Sport Council in Monaco, FIA said in a statement that the rule that banned team orders that could interfere with a race result will not be in place for 2011.

Ferrari was fined $100,000 this season because Felipe Massa let teammate Fernando Alonso overtake him to win the German Grand Prix after receiving radio messages from the team. Alonso was ahead of Massa in the overall standings at the time, and the victory boosted his chances of winning the championship - although he eventually fell short to Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel.

FIA did not strip Alonso of the victory or dock the team points and said it would review the ban on team orders, which was introduced following the 2002 season after Ferrari ordered Rubens Barrichello to hand victory to Michael Schumacher in the Austrian Grand Prix.

The World Motor Sport council also approved the introduction of a ''green engine'' beginning in 2013. After discussions between FIA and engine manufacturers, it was decided that the 2.4-liter V8s currently used would be replaced by four-cylinder 1.6-liter engines with high pressure injection and a maximum of 12,000 rpm.

''The engines will deliver a 35 percent reduction in fuel consumption and will feature extensive energy management and energy recovery systems, while maintaining current levels of performance,'' FIA said. ''In 2013, five engines will be permitted per driver, but each year after that the limit will be four.''

FIA also decided to bring back intermediate tires for 2011.