Data & Methodology
Where these numbers come from, how often they update, and what every metric means.
Sources & update cadence
Timing and telemetry come from FastF1, which reads Formula 1's official live-timing feed. Championship standings and per-driver results are sourced from the Jolpica/Ergast dataset.
We do not query F1 live during page loads. After each race weekend a scheduled job pre-computes every session and uploads it to object storage; the app serves only from that cache. This keeps the site fast and stable, but means a session appears once pre-computation runs (weekly, plus after each event) rather than in real time.
Session types
Which sessions exist depends on the weekend format (conventional vs sprint).
| Code | Unit / Type | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| FP1 / FP2 / FP3 | Practice | Free-practice sessions before qualifying |
| Q | Qualifying | Q1/Q2/Q3 knockout — sets the race grid |
| SQ | Sprint Qualifying | Sets the grid for the Sprint (sprint weekends) |
| S | Sprint | Short race on sprint weekends |
| R | Race | The Grand Prix |
Telemetry channels
Per-driver time series, resampled to ~25 fps for replay.
| Channel | Unit / Type | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Position X / Y | decimetres | Car location on the track map, sampled ~25× per second |
| Speed | km/h | Car speed |
| Gear | 1–8 | Selected gear (step signal, nearest-neighbour) |
| DRS | on / off | Drag Reduction System state |
| Throttle | % | Throttle application, 0–100 |
| Brake | % | Brake application, 0–100 |
Lap data
One row per driver per lap.
| Field | Unit / Type | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Lap Time | seconds | Total lap time |
| Sector 1 / 2 / 3 | seconds | Per-sector split times |
| Speed I1 / I2 / FL / ST | km/h | Speed-trap readings (two intermediates, finish line, longest straight) |
| Compound | S / M / H / I / W | Tyre compound fitted for the lap |
| Tyre Life | laps | Laps completed on the current tyre set |
| Stint | number | Stint index between pit stops |
| Pit In / Out | timestamp | Pit entry/exit times (used for pit-stop detection) |
| Personal Best | flag | Whether the lap is the driver's fastest |
| Deleted | flag | Lap removed by stewards (e.g. track limits) |
Tyre compounds
| Code | Compound | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| S | Soft | Fastest, shortest life |
| M | Medium | Balanced pace and durability |
| H | Hard | Slowest, longest life |
| I | Intermediate | Light or drying wet conditions |
| W | Wet | Heavy rain |
Weather
Time series sampled through the session.
| Field | Unit / Type | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Air Temp | °C | Ambient air temperature |
| Track Temp | °C | Track surface temperature |
| Humidity | % | Relative humidity |
| Rainfall | bool | Whether rain is detected |
| Wind Speed | m/s | Wind speed |
| Wind Direction | ° | Wind bearing, 0–360 |
Race control
Flags, safety car, VSC, DRS enablement, and penalties.
| Field | Unit / Type | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Category | text | Message type (Flag, SafetyCar, Drs, …) |
| Flag | text | Flag shown (yellow, red, chequered, blue, …) |
| Scope | text | Track / Sector / Driver |
| Sector | number | Affected marshalling sector, when scoped |
| Racing Number | number | Driver referenced, when scoped |
| Message | text | Full race-control message text |
Results & standings
| Field | Unit / Type | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Position | number | Finishing (or qualifying) position |
| Grid Position | number | Starting position |
| Points | number | Championship points scored |
| Status | text | Finished / +1 Lap / DNF reason |
| Time | seconds | Race time or gap; Q1/Q2/Q3 times in qualifying |
| Position Change | number | Places gained or lost vs the grid |
Accuracy & limitations
- Indexing delay. FastF1 typically indexes a session 30–120 minutes after it ends; a just-finished session may not be available yet.
- Future / unpublished sessions. Sessions that haven't run, or aren't pre-computed yet, return no data and show a “not yet available” state.
- Telemetry resampling. Replay frames are interpolated to a fixed 25 fps; step signals (gear, DRS) use nearest-neighbour to avoid spurious in-between values.
- Not real time. Numbers reflect the most recent pre-computation, not the live session.
- Unofficial. F1THEDATA is an independent fan project and is not affiliated with Formula 1.