The first safety car
The safety car was first used in Formula 1 at the 1973 Canadian Grand Prix, when a Porsche 914 was deployed to lead the field after a crash. The system was chaotic — the safety car picked up the wrong cars, and the race was ultimately declared void. It would be over 20 years before the safety car became a permanent part of F1.
The modern era
The safety car was formally introduced as a permanent feature in 1993, with a Mercedes-Benz 500 SL. Since then, the safety car has become one of the most important tools in F1 race management. The current safety car, a Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series, is driven by Bernd Maylander, a former racing driver who has held the role since 2000.
Maylander is one of the most experienced drivers in F1. He knows every circuit, every corner, and every braking zone. His job is to lead the field at a safe but challenging pace, keeping the tires warm while not creating unnecessary gaps between cars.
How the safety car has changed strategy
The safety car has transformed F1 strategy. A well-timed safety car can turn a losing race into a winning one by allowing drivers to pit for fresh tires without losing position. Conversely, a poorly timed safety car can ruin a driver's race by bunching the field and erasing a comfortable lead.
Teams now plan their race strategies around the possibility of a safety car. They model different scenarios — safety car in lap 10, lap 20, lap 40 — and prepare responses for each. The safety car has made F1 strategy more complex and more unpredictable.
The most controversial safety car deployments
The 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix produced the most controversial safety car decision in F1 history. The safety car was deployed on the penultimate lap after Nicholas Latifi's crash. Race director Michael Masi then allowed only the lapped cars between Hamilton and Verstappen to unlap themselves, setting up a final-lap shootout that decided the championship.
Other controversial deployments include the 2020 Belgian Grand Prix, where only three laps were completed behind the safety car before the race was declared complete, and the 2021 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, where a late safety car restart produced chaos and a dramatic finish.
The future of the safety car
In the 2026 era, with faster cars and more complex energy management systems, the safety car's role is evolving. The introduction of the Virtual Safety Car (VSC) has given race control more options for managing incidents without deploying the physical safety car. But the physical safety car remains essential for serious incidents where the track needs to be cleared.