F1 motorsports boss reveals when DRS will be scrapped

Formula One motorsports boss Ross Brawn has revealed he hopes to have DRS wiped from the sport for the 2021 season.

The drag reduction system, which opens an adjustable flap on a car's rear wing to promote overtaking, made its debut in 2011.

But the artificial device has remained a controversial aspect of the competition.

Drivers can deploy DRS for portions of a straight if they are within one second of a car in front, offering an easy speed boost over their rivals.

"It's a compromise," Brawn told Motorsport.com.

"I think we have it, and what we should do is find a better solution. Because it is an enhancement to aid overtaking, and what we really want is the cars to be able to slipstream one another properly and overtake."

The former champion engineer Brawn is searching for ways to improve F1 under new owners Liberty Media.

Given his discussions include settling on a direction for the power units, which became 1.6L V6s in 2014, he is working on a total overhaul of the racing itself in time to coincide with the next generation of engines.

As teams naturally require time to develop their next cars, it is hoped that DRS will remain for just three more seasons.

"A current Formula One car is totally optimised around running by itself," Brawn said.

"The teams, when they go in the wind tunnel and create their CFD programs to develop the car, it's all done in isolation. So when you put another car around it, the car doesn't work as well.

"What we are working on is generating the capacity to look at cars that are racing each other in close proximity, and what sort of designs we need to enable that to happen.

"And I think when we do that, which is our ambition for 2021, then we will have cars that don't need DRS. There may be other solutions that are needed to achieve that, but they won't have the artificiality of DRS. Because it is mixed opinion.

"I think fans want to see a great overtaking manoeuvre. They don't want to see a push-the-button overtake and get back in and carry on."

Cars underwent significant changes for the 2017 season to increase downforce.

The nose was made slightly longer, tyres were widened by about 25 per cent and the rear wings were flattened and widened.