F1 in Belgium: Machine learning algorithms are ruining the sport
F1 in Belgium: Machine learning algorithms are ruining the sport
比利时F1大奖赛：机器学习算法正在毁掉这项运动
Formula 1 returned to the Spa-Francorchamps circuit for the Belgium Grand Prix this weekend. This ribbon of tarmac in the Ardennes is one of the sport’s historic venues, featuring in the first F1 season way back in 1950. But as yesterday’s race showed, the current F1 machinery is utterly ill-suited to this dramatic venue. 本周末，一级方程式赛车（F1）重返斯帕-弗朗科尔尚赛道，举办比利时大奖赛。这条位于阿登森林的沥青赛道是该运动最具历史意义的场地之一，早在1950年的首个F1赛季中就已亮相。然而，正如昨天的比赛所展示的那样，当前的F1赛车完全不适合这个充满戏剧性的场地。
As we saw at Suzuka in Japan earlier this year, a 2026 F1 battery is able to power the race car’s electric motor for only a few seconds a lap; for much of the rest of the lap, the energy-starved cars have less power going to their rear wheels than in the junior F2 feeder series. 正如我们今年早些时候在日本铃鹿赛道所看到的那样，2026款F1电池每圈只能为赛车的电动机提供几秒钟的动力；在其余大部分时间里，这些能源匮乏的赛车输送到后轮的动力甚至还不如低级别的F2赛事。
The best race track in the world
全球最佳赛道
For many, including much of the current F1 grid, Spa is considered perhaps the planet’s greatest race track. In fact, both Spa and the Belgian Grand Prix predate the F1 world championship, with its first race held in 1922. Back then, the circuit was a 9-mile loop of public roads, taking in the towns of Malmedy and Stavelot before returning to Francorchamps. 对于许多人，包括目前F1赛场上的大多数车手来说，斯帕被认为是地球上最伟大的赛道。事实上，斯帕赛道和比利时大奖赛的历史比F1世界锦标赛还要悠久，其首场比赛于1922年举行。当时，这条赛道是一条9英里长的公共道路环线，途经马尔梅迪和斯塔沃洛镇，最后回到弗朗科尔尚。
In the postwar years, the layout shrank slightly to 8.7 miles (14.1 km) and was ferociously fast, with average lap speeds of up to 150 mph (240 km/h)—and ferociously dangerous, given cars with huge amounts of power and minimal concessions to safety. The Spa we know and love today was reconfigured in 1979, cutting out about half of the original layout, though at 4.3 miles (6.9 km), it’s still the longest track on the F1 calendar. 战后，赛道布局略微缩减至8.7英里（14.1公里），速度极快，平均单圈速度高达150英里/小时（240公里/小时）。考虑到当时赛车拥有巨大的动力且几乎没有安全保障，这极其危险。我们今天所熟知并喜爱的斯帕赛道是在1979年重新设计的，砍掉了原布局的一半左右，尽管如此，4.3英里（6.9公里）的长度仍使其成为F1赛历中最长的赛道。
Interestingly, some of the circuit remained as public roads until 2000, when it became a dedicated race track only. Eau Rouge and Raidillon are its two most famous corners—a quick left, then right, that climbs 77 feet (24 m) of steep hill. But in the era of high downforce race cars, other corners like Pouhon have become greater tests of skill. 有趣的是，该赛道的部分路段直到2000年才停止作为公共道路使用，转变为专用赛道。Eau Rouge和Raidillon是其最著名的两个弯道——一个快速左转紧接右转，爬升77英尺（24米）的陡坡。但在高下压力赛车时代，像Pouhon这样的其他弯道已成为对车手技术更大的考验。
Not this year.
今年情况不同。
As I’ve detailed more than a few times now, the current breed of F1 car is not at all suited to tracks with high-speed corners. Because the hybrid side of the new power units provides such little energy, going flat out all the time is not the fastest way to complete a lap. Corners that once required a driver’s commitment and maybe a little bravery to drive at the limit are now coasted into to allow the engine to divert some of its power to recharge the battery. 正如我多次详细说明的那样，当前一代的F1赛车完全不适合拥有高速弯道的赛道。由于新型动力单元的混合动力部分提供的能量太少，全程全油门并不是完成单圈的最快方式。那些曾经需要车手全力以赴、甚至需要一点勇气才能极限过弯的弯道，现在却需要滑行进入，以便让发动机分出部分动力来为电池充电。
Obviously, the drivers aren’t thrilled. “For most of sector two, you run just on the engine,” said Red Bull’s Max Verstappen. “So what is that? 450 bhp, 500 bhp? Something like that, which is, I guess, more or less what a Formula 3 car has but with F1 downforce. So you can imagine, of course, that that is not very exciting to drive.” 显然，车手们并不感到兴奋。红牛车队的马克斯·维斯塔潘表示：“在第二赛段的大部分时间里，你只能靠发动机驱动。那是什么？450马力，500马力？差不多就是这样，我想这和三级方程式赛车的动力水平差不多，但却带着F1的下压力。所以你可以想象，驾驶起来当然不会很刺激。”
“But honestly, I don’t want to sit here and complain again because probably someone will shoot me outside the door,” he joked. “但老实说，我不想坐在这里再次抱怨，因为可能有人会在门外朝我开枪，”他开玩笑说。
F1 is another thing AI has ruined
F1是另一个被人工智能毁掉的事物
Things did not go nearly as well for Antonelli’s teammate, George Russell. Declared this year’s champion-in-waiting before the start of the season, the British driver has been comprehensively outdriven by his teenage teammate this year. But Antonelli’s ease with the new cars and Russell’s discomfort with having to adopt a radically new driving style can’t explain the half-second gap between the pair in qualifying. 安东内利的队友乔治·拉塞尔的情况则糟糕得多。这位英国车手在赛季开始前被视为今年的夺冠热门，但今年却被他十几岁的队友全面压制。然而，安东内利对新赛车的适应自如，以及拉塞尔因被迫采用全新的驾驶风格而产生的不适，都无法解释两人在排位赛中半秒的差距。
There was—and is—something definitely wrong with Russell’s car, which was clearly slower than its sister car on several flat-out sections. The self-learning AI systems that teams are now using to manage their energy deployment strategies across a lap are looking increasingly likely to blame. By their nature, they’re fairly opaque to the driver. 拉塞尔的赛车确实存在问题，在几个全油门路段明显慢于队友的赛车。车队目前用于管理单圈能量部署策略的自学习AI系统，越来越被认为是罪魁祸首。从本质上讲，这些系统对车手来说是相当不透明的。
And because the electrical energy is so limited—just 4 MJ capacity in the battery—even tiny deployments to fill in extra torque to help the V6 or from getting a bit of wheelspin is enough to throw off the energy management and leave a driver with a fraction of the power they thought they should have. 由于电能非常有限——电池容量仅为4兆焦耳——即使是微小的能量部署（用于补充额外扭矩以辅助V6发动机，或因轻微车轮打滑而消耗的能量）也足以打乱能量管理，导致车手获得的动力远低于预期。