The Silverstone circuit has been modernised using elements of the answer used on the Red Bull Ring, so as to address the restrictions of the Formula 1 track.

Every week ago on the Austrian Grand Prix, recent FIA rules were announced, adding gravel and reducing kerbs to stop drivers robotically running wide without consequences beyond removing lap times.

Now that Formula 1 has moved to Silverstone, drivers will likely be facing much the identical system at two key points on the circuit which were the main focus of restrictions lately – Stowe and Copse – but with a couple of differences.

At Copse – the fast right-hander that was the primary corner at Silverstone for a few years – the changes were made without adding any gravel.

The FIA ​​has requested that a white track boundary line be painted on the corner exit kerb, just like the addition of miniature gravel traps on the ultimate two corners of the Red Bull Ring, to scale back the width between the far fringe of the kerb and the within fringe of the white line to 1.5m.

As with Austria, this size was chosen because F1 cars are 2 metres wide and reducing the gap makes it easier for drivers to see once they are approaching the track limits – a change the F1 team has been asking for for a very long time.

The white line painted on the curbs also includes the identical blue line utilized in Austria to make driving even easier for drivers.

According to Motorsport.com, although there isn’t any gravel at this location outside the run-off zone, the FIA ​​believes the difference in grip between the run-off zone and the track is sufficient to act as a deterrent.

The changes are different at Stowe and are believed to have been made with the consent of the MotoGP riders who will race at Silverstone next month.

The gravel pit outside the Stowe track has been moved in towards the track by 6-8m in places and the white line on the exit kerb has been moved to the left, just like what happened at Copse.

There continues to be a big area of ​​water runoff across the width of the kerbs and between the elongated gravel pool.

According to Motorsport.com, the plan to make use of the identical system at Silverstone as in Austria was drawn up by the FIA ​​at the identical time for each circuits.

During a review of track limits last yr, the governing body identified these two circuits as the most important problem and intends to take motion to host a Formula 1 event there in 2024.

Motorsport.com also understands that while other venues where track restrictions are a big issue are unable to accommodate recent gravel traps or extend existing ones, the FIA ​​plans to implement a white line movement solution at some upcoming events.

This would a minimum of reduce the width of the kerb and discourage drivers from driving so wide in some places.

The results of the track restrictions in Austria were also felt at Silverstone, with Williams driver Logan Sargeant and McLaren driver Oscar Piastri still smarting from losing vital lap times in qualifying at Turn 6 on the Red Bull Ring.

The kerb width was reduced by the movement of the white line, but only by 1.8m, and a bit of further on the precise, by a concrete area, there was a gravel trap. Piastri was so frustrated by losing time in Q3 on account of a large run through this area that he called the situation “embarrassing” in a post-qualifying media appearance.

“I think there are two points for me,” Piastri said on Thursday. “The first is that if there may be room for a automotive to depart, we monitor it in a good way.

“The evidence that led to my lap being removed got here from a helicopter that was flying just at me during that lap, which is a bit painful [and the point of McLaren’s protest into the issue] when there are other individuals who potentially also left without having a helicopter with them.

“So I feel it's a really advantageous line and we’d like to have some discussions.

Oscar Piastri, McLaren F1 Team, 2nd place, on the post-Sprint press conference

Photo: Mark Sutton / Motorsports images

“But the simplest approach to eliminate it’s to widen the white line by 20 cm [at that point] and also you don't should worry about it in any respect.

“I’ll repeat what I said last week: I feel the shot where you’ll be able to see half of my wheel hanging off the concrete, almost within the gravel, to me is a very cool shot that everybody desires to see.

“So I feel, yes, it’s only a shame that with all of the work we’ve done in so many other areas, we’ve still left quite a whole lot of room for what finally ends up being quite a painful issue for everybody.

“Of course, it's painful for me because I'm the one who deleted the video, but I feel it's also painful for all of the fans. I don't think anyone desires to see whether or not they're inside or outside of me.

“There's a white line there, and if I had gone half a metre wider I would have completely destroyed the floor, the car and I wouldn't have done a single lap, so I think there are some points for that.”

Other changes to the track include a ‘combination’ kerb on the right-hand side of the Village (Turn 3), in keeping with event notes released by the FIA ​​on behalf of race director Niels Wittich.

A gravel trap has been added to the left side of the Chapel and the primary a part of the Club complex, reducing the asphalt runoff to 1.7m on the precise side of the track.

The connecting kerb on the within the primary a part of the Club circuit – Turn 16 – has been replaced with grass, while the asphalt run-off section on the left-hand side of the service straight has also been grassed over.

The white line on the left of Turn 11 (Becketts) and Turn 17 (Club 2) has also been moved further to the left – just like the situation at Copse and Stowe.

Time heals, as they are saying. Lando Norris’s comments following the incident with Max Verstappen that decided the Austrian Grand Prix were much stronger than his response just a few days later, expressed with the advantage of hindsight and distance from the event itself.

Compare them. Among the adjectives Norris utilized in Austria were “reckless” and “desperate”, referring to Verstappen’s determined efforts to carry on to the lead at Turn 3. The Briton told Sky that “if he says he didn’t do anything wrong, I’ll lose a lot of respect for that”, clearly feeling that his friend and rival was entirely in charge for the collision.

Four days later, Norris had partially modified his mind. His subsequent review of the incident still contained concerns, mainly about movement under braking, but Norris now believes the collision was the results of racing “close to the edge” slightly than exceeding the boundaries.

“I don't think he needs to apologize, honestly. Some of the things I said in the pen after the race were just frustration,” Norris concluded.

“Lots of adrenaline, a whole lot of emotion and I probably said just a few things I didn't consider, especially at the tip of the week.

“It was quite a pathetic incident by way of what ended each of our races, it wasn’t obvious contact. It was probably one in all the smallest contacts you can have, but with pretty terrible consequences for each of us, especially me.

“Overall, a good race, very close at times but we talked about it and we are both happy to be racing again.”

Lando Norris, McLaren F1 Team

Photo: Simon Galloway / Motorsports images

Initially claiming he had no room on the sting of the track, Norris later admitted he could have kept a rather larger margin over the left-hand kerb to avoid the incident, but stated that “there are things on both sides that we certainly wanted to do better, in a slightly different way”.

Whenever there may be a high-profile incident on the track, especially after two drivers clash horns within the fight for victory, there isn’t a doubt that there’s a media frenzy. This is confirmed by the cryptic message issued in 1995 by Eric Cantona, who responded to his successful appeal against a brief prison sentence for kicking a fan with the next words: “When the seagulls follow the trawler, it is because they think the sardines are going to be thrown into the sea.” Diving in to see the silver cascade of abandoned aquatic life is instinctive.

Reviewing the incident now, without the burden of implied context, is different from watching it 4 days ago. At the time, the incident was the culmination of an intense build-up to the on-track battle that threatened to show into a foul temper. It was the culmination of all the things that had preceded it after the last round of pit stops, and an incident that would have been avoided entirely, but Norris later felt he could have perhaps moved just a little to the left…

But it needed to be captured in glorious Technicolor. A clash between the championship leader and a recent, first-time winner who’s an out of doors bet? There is barely one story on the town in the intervening time, and naturally it can be analyzed in great detail.

In the interests of rigor, nonetheless, let's undergo this again. Speak in order that no comment can raise the problem and without the preceding 64 laps that might characterize the events.

And without context it’s like this Thread incident. It's a classic case of two drivers overlapping barely but simply having probably the most dramatic consequences. Norris, by his later claims, has a little bit of freedom to take more of the kerb on the left. Verstappen, for his part, could have moved a bit more inside, however it's fair to say the Dutchman isn't expecting any movement on the left; his head isn't giving the tell-tale sign of a slight glance to the left. His eyes are fixed on the apex at this point.

There is a movement under braking, something Verstappen has returned to in just a few of his defensive forms, however it just isn’t a wholly reactive movement; there may be a nuance between the movement under braking and the movement to take the road to open the corner. Given Verstappen's previous misdemeanours earlier in his profession, that is open to malicious interpretation – but one could argue that Hanlon's razor could apply on this case.

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB20, battles with Lando Norris, McLaren MCL38

Photo: Andy Hone / Motorsports images

Verstappen, meanwhile, was given a 10-second penalty for contact, which ultimately had no effect on his fifth-place finish as he was yards behind Nico Hulkenberg. Whether or not it was definitely worth the penalty is as much as the stewards; on one other day, with barely different (and smaller) consequences, the book might need read “racing incident.”

Did we, the media, overreact? At the time, probably not. It was a high-profile incident that deserved a full coverage. With time and a probability to reassess, the decision could also be barely different. Everyone has an opinion, and relating to the largely subjective medium of racing, you call it what you think that.

But it’s at all times good to take a look at something with fresh eyes. Perhaps, having the luxurious of watching from the surface, it’s Daniel Ricciardo who captures the moment best.

“I think the result was bigger than what actually happened on the track,” the Australian assessed. “From what I saw, no less than nothing seemed exaggerated.

“Was it overstepping boundaries? Probably. But was it anything dangerous or reckless? At least from what I saw, no.”