FIA make major change ahead of Dutch GP amid Max Verstappen and George Russell concerns

The FIA have decided to make a significant change to their race operations starting from the Dutch Grand Prix this weekend amid concerns from drivers such as George Russell and Max Verstappen.

McLaren's Oscar Piastri goes into the weekend nine points ahead of team-mate Lando Norris at the top of the Drivers' Championship.

With 10 races left - and barring a surprise upturn in form from Red Bull or Mercedes - it will be a two-way fight for the title between the two McLaren drivers.

There has rarely been controversy involving the two drivers, with a collision at the Canadian Grand Prix between Piastri and Norris, which forced the latter to retire, the only genuine flashpoint between them.

At the British Grand Prix, meanwhile, Piastri received a 10-second time penalty for erratic braking under the safety car and missed out on a potential race win.

In the aftermath of the incident, Verstappen's Red Bull span out - something which the Dutchman blamed on cold tyres and individual car setup.

While the poor weather conditions will have played a role in the tyres being too cold, drivers have often complained about the issue while under the safety car even in dry conditions.

George Russell told Motorsport in 2022 that the car in use, an Aston Martin Vantage, was five seconds slower than its Mercedes counterpart - the two cars were alternated from that season onwards - across the lap of the Australian Grand Prix circuit.

Verstappen described it as being 'like a turtle', and added: "It definitely needs more grip, because our tyres were stone cold."

It is worth noting that Aston Martin did act on drivers' complaints at the beginning of 2024 by introducing an improved Vantage that had been 'adapted and modified to make it officially F1 ready'.

But now an even faster model will be introduced for the Dutch Grand Prix to further allay concerns.

The Aston Martin Vantage S will debut at Zandvoort, with the car said to be able to go from 0-62mph in just 3.4 seconds.

An Aston Martin press release states that the car will also possess 'exceptional turn-in response and a high level of cornering grip' alongside a 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 engine.

Safety car driver Bernd Maylander said: "The introduction of the Vantage S as the Official FIA Safety Car of F1 represents yet another clear step forward in the Vantage's performance capability, exhibiting capabilities that further allow me to effectively respond quickly and safely when we receive the call for on-track deployment."