The rules of wheel-to-wheel racing
F1 drivers are allowed to race hard, but there are limits. Some are in the FIA's International Sporting Code (in a section called Appendix L), which bans things like weaving to defend or deliberately pushing someone off the track. The rest comes from the Driving Standards Guidelines, a document the stewards use to decide who was in the wrong when two cars meet in a corner.
The guidelines say clearly that they are guidelines and not regulations. The stewards still have to look at each incident on its own merits, and they do. That's why two incidents that look alike on TV can end with different decisions.
The basic principles
A few rules apply wherever cars are racing:
- One move to defend. A driver defending a position can make one change of direction to block. Weaving from side to side isn't allowed.
- Leave a car's width when moving back. If a defender has moved off the racing line and then moves back towards it before a corner, they must leave at least one car's width between their car and the edge of the track.
- No moving under braking. Once the defending car has started braking for a corner, it can't change direction, except to follow the normal racing line. Swerving in the braking zone is dangerous because the attacker has nowhere to go.
- No forcing off. A driver mustn't push another car off the track, and mustn't deliberately crowd a car beyond the edge of the track.
- No gaining an advantage off track. A driver who leaves the track and gains something (a place, time, or keeping a place they would have lost) will usually be told to give it back, or get a penalty.
The one exception to the weaving rule is moving to break the tow of a car that's a safe distance behind on a straight. That's allowed, as long as the move doesn't put anyone in danger.
Who is owed room in a corner
Most incidents happen at corners, when one car tries to pass another. The guidelines set out which driver is entitled to room, depending on which side the attacker is on.
Overtaking on the inside
To be given room, the attacking driver must:
- have their front axle at least alongside the other car's mirror, both before and at the apex of the corner;
- be in full control of their car, and not have "dived in" from too far back;
- take a reasonable line and be able to make the corner while staying within track limits.
If they meet those tests, the defending driver has to leave them space. If they don't, the defender is entitled to take their normal line, and an attacker who hits them is likely to be blamed.
Overtaking on the outside
The outside is treated as the harder move, so the test is stricter. The attacker needs their front axle ahead of the other car's front axle at the apex, must be in control from entry to exit, and must be able to make the corner within track limits.
If they meet those tests, the car on the inside has to leave them space on the exit. The defender can't simply run wide and push the attacker off.
Chicanes and long corners
At chicanes and S-bends, the same tests apply to each part. The first corner usually decides who has priority, but the stewards look at the whole sequence. For long, sweeping corners with no clear apex, they judge each case individually.
How the stewards actually judge it
The tests above are reference points, not a strict rulebook. For 2026 the guidelines were rewritten to give the stewards more room to use their judgement. They now ask things like:
- How did the two cars arrive at the corner? Was the move late or optimistic?
- Did either driver lock up or understeer, and did that cause the contact?
- Did either driver try to avoid a collision?
- Where was the apex, given the line the cars were actually taking?
The 2026 version also includes some common-sense points. A car being overtaken can't simply "disappear". A lock-up or a small steering correction doesn't automatically mean a driver has lost control.
The 2025 guidelines had dropped the requirement for an attacker on the inside to leave room from the apex to the exit, which some drivers felt encouraged moves where the attacker ran the defender wide. The stewards still look at whether the attacker was in control and stayed within track limits, so it doesn't give the inside car free rein.
Leaving the track to keep or take a place
Running wide and coming back ahead is one of the most common things drivers get penalised for. If a driver goes off the track during a fight and comes back ahead, or keeps a place they'd otherwise have lost, they're expected to hand the place back. If they don't, the usual penalty is 10 seconds, or 5 seconds if there were mitigating circumstances.
Two well-known recent cases involved Max Verstappen. At the 2024 Mexico City Grand Prix he got two 10-second penalties in quick succession: one for forcing Lando Norris off the track, and one for leaving the track himself and gaining an advantage on the next lap. At the 2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix he cut the first chicane while defending the lead from Oscar Piastri on lap 1, didn't give the place back, and got a 5-second penalty. Piastri went on to win.
For how the rules on the white lines work outside of fights, see track limits.
Typical penalties
The stewards have a list of usual penalties for each offence, though they can go higher or lower. In the race, causing a collision usually earns 10 seconds, or 5 in mitigating circumstances. Very minor contact may get nothing at all. More than one change of direction while defending is usually 5 seconds and can be a drive-through. Forcing someone off the track deliberately can bring a stop-and-go or a much bigger time penalty.
Penalty points are now reserved for dangerous, reckless or apparently deliberate driving, rather than handed out for every mistake. For the most extreme cases, the 2026 guidelines allow disqualification or a one-race ban. The details are on the types of penalties, penalty points and collisions and who gets blamed pages.
Lapped cars
A driver who is about to be lapped is shown blue flags and has to let the faster car through at the first opportunity. They're not racing the leader, so they mustn't hold them up. Ignoring blue flags brings a penalty. See blue flags and lapped cars.