What’s new for F1’s TV coverage in 2023

Some of the most significant changes in the way F1 is broadcast have taken place behind the scenes, especially with its production facility at Biggin Hill in the UK having been revamped this winter to make it state-of-the art. 

But where F1 never stands still is in trying to enhance what fans see at home, either when grands prix are broadcast live from trackside, or in terms of other elements like on-boards and graphics. 

With the 2023 season getting underway in Bahrain this weekend, F1 has spent the winter looking at what improvements it can make to its coverage. 

That work has now been complete, and it is set to roll out a host of new ideas – some of which use some pretty ground-breaking technology. 

Here we take a look at what fans can expect this season. 

Artificial intelligence slow motion

Formula 1 has often used super slow-motion cameras in places where seeing action at a different speed provides some added insight – such as when cars brush the barriers at the Monaco Grand Prix. 

But with these cameras costing around £400,000 each, it is not the sort of thing that can be rolled out for every corner at every race track. 

With it hard to predict where spectacular moments will take place, this has often meant that when we see slow motion replay of big incidents, they can appear quite juddery – especially when viewed in 4K definition. 

F1 has worked on making such replays look better and trialled a new artificial intelligence product at last year’s United States Grand Prix. 

The system processes the footage from the normal cameras and, by cleverly filling out missing frames (technically called interpolation), ensures that replays can be silky smooth. 

The AI was put to use when Fernando Alonso was launched into the air and barriers by Lance Stroll during the Austin event, so replays of it looked much better.

F1’s director of broadcast and media Dean Locke says that the process will be used at all races from now on – which should mean some better definition replays. 

“It’s a very smart system,” he said. “We can we make all our cameras high motion, and it’s just on another level to be able to do this live.” 

The process can be used for any footage that is obtained over a weekend, including pitlane cameras and onboards. 

Enhanced audio

Fans, crowd at Dutch F1 race

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