Final F1 Tata connectivity challenge announced

In a sport where success is defined by the ability to adapt quickly as circumstances change, drivers receive crucial support from their teams’ ability to make decisions based on data-driven predictive analytics.

The final challenge aims to show how fans can be engaged at the very heart of F1. Set by F1 management, the challenge is to design a prediction tool that asks F1 followers to forecast how each Grand Prix will unfold, and to submit their predictions for each driver and team for evaluation.

The tool should also enable F1 management to rank the predictions and reward the fans that forecast the most accurate outcomes.

 Talking about the challenge, Chief Technical Officer of FOM, John Morrison said: “Each Grand Prix weekend, fans are glued to their TVs to see how drivers and teams respond to changing circumstances such as adverse weather conditions or an unexpected safety car deployment.

"With this challenge, we are asking entrants to create a platform where F1 followers can use practice data and their knowledge of the sport to predict how the story of each race will play out and who will emerge as the winner.”

Former F1 driver and commentator Martin Brundle said: “In addition to bringing existing die-hard F1 fans closer to the sport, a predictive analysis tool would also open up new possibilities on how the sport could evolve and attract new followers in the future."

The first challenge of the F1 Connectivity Innovation prize, set by the Mercedes, was to design a new approach for displaying critical race car telemetry and sensor data to enable engineers at the race track and at the factory in the UK to make more accurate decisions through real-time data visualisation. The winning entries came from the UK, Spain and Australia.

Each entry will be evaluated by a judging panel of drivers and F1 technologists which includes John Morrison, Lewis Hamilton, Paddy Lowe, David Coulthard and Martin Brundle. They are joined by Mehul Kapadia, Managing Director of F1 Business at Tata Communications.

The deadline for entries for the second challenge is Tuesday September 8, 2015 at 5:00pm BST (GMT +1).

Tata Communications