A Formula One driver’s primary point of contact with the team during a race is his engineer, so the importance of establishing a strong relationship and clear, concise communication procedures cannot be understated. It can, and has on many occasions, won or lost a race for a driver.

With plenty of drivers switching teams and rookies bedding themselves into new environments, we are watching in real-time as these new relationships evolve. So what are the key points that make a driver-engineer combination click?

Off track relations

If you really want to achieve the synergy that the most famous driver-engineer pairings have, getting to know each in a non-performance related setting is essential.

When less is more

This is more in the engineers hands to figure out. Each driver is going to want a certain amount of information depending on the situation in the race. Being sensitive to your drivers emotional state, and understanding what they require to perform optimally will not only reduce the risk of getting shouted at, but most importantly make sure you are both in the right head space to make logical, level-headed decisions.

For example, let’s say your driver just had a horrible ten second pit stop, do they need some encouragement to shake it off, or perhaps they aren’t going to want to have you in their ear for a little while. Sometimes wanting to be helpful means doing nothing at all.

Keep it Simple

So many times an engineer decides to speak in riddles to their driver, much to their annoyance, and rightfully so, driving a formula one car is difficult enough without have to do a brain teaser to work out your race strategy. Keeping the messages short and sweet is very important for a harmonious exchange. Engineers have enormous amounts of data at their fingertips, and the temptation is often to try and download that all onto the driver -in one go…

On the drivers side this is where you need to do some work potentially. Maximising your mental capacity while driving will give you an edge over your competitors, as you will simply know more about what’s going on in your own car and all the others around you. It’s not a coincidence how many former champions were seemingly able to be watching the race going on while participating.

Uncertainty is unacceptable

As an engineer, if you’re not sure about something, 99% of the time it’s better that your driver has no clue. The infamous “we are checking” radios from Xavi Marcos at Ferrari are quite literally the single fastest way to erode the trust your driver has in you, especially if what you are “checking” should be on the tip of your tongue. Deleting the words “hope”, “maybe”, from your vocabulary will also do wonders in improving the effectiveness of your communication.