F1 23: How To Be Faster in Wet Weather

Wet weather driving is a real skill in F1 23. The 2023 Formula 1 car is hard enough to drive in the dry without any assists. When you introduce the dynamic weather system and it starts to rain, things get a lot tougher.

When the rain starts to fall, and you are suddenly racing F1 23 on a wet track, the grip levels fall away making it harder to accelerate, brake and corner at speed.

In this guide, I’ll look at a range of tips and techniques that can be applied to become faster in wet weather in F1 23. I’ll look at how to drive in wet conditions in F1 23 while maintaining a competitive speed against the AI and other drivers.

Braking in wet weather

The first thing you’ll notice when you head out onto a wet track in F1 23, is that if you brake at your normal braking point, you’ll almost certainly miss the corner apex. You may also lock your wheels if you apply the same amount of brake pressure.

Driving in the rain in F1 23 requires much less input than when driving in dry conditions. You will need to be gentler and more subtle when applying any input from throttle to brake and steering.

The grip levels on the track are much less in the rain as the water acts to reduce friction between the rubber tyres and the asphalt track. In heavy rain in F1 23, it can almost feel like you’re driving on ice due to the lack of traction and grip.

When approaching a corner in wet conditions, you will need to apply much less brake pressure to avoid your wheels from locking. This will make the braking zones longer which will force you to start braking earlier.

The heavier the rain, the earlier you’ll need to start braking, and the less force you’ll need to apply.

Cadence braking

One tip for braking in wet conditions in F1 23, is to utilise an advanced braking technique called cadence braking. This is the method of applying the brakes and then releasing the pressure, before re-applying the brakes again.

This is designed to brake heavily just before the point where the tyres will start to lock. Then release the brakes just before they lock, before reapplying the brakes.

This will reset the brakes and the amount of grip between the tyres and the track surface. While it may seem counter-intuitive to release the brakes, when done continuously, this technique can drastically shorten your braking distance.

Brake setup

As well as adjusting your braking technique to improve your braking in the rain, you can also make adjustments to your car setup to make braking easier to manage.

You can adjust both your brake bias and your brake pressure, and both of these can have dramatic effects on your braking performance in the rain.

The problem with braking in wet conditions is that your front wheels are more likely to lock up. You can move your brake bias further rearwards to lower the chances of your front tyres locking under braking. A more rearward brake bias will almost always help to reduce the likelihood of locking a wheel in wet conditions in F1 23.

You can also adjust your brake pressure to a lower level to again reduce the risk of locking a wheel. Normally, you will always want your brake pressure at or close to 100%. This will provide the strongest braking force when applying the brake pedal.

In the rain, however, you will rarely be able to fully press the brake pedal due to the reduced grip with the track. Instead of managing your brake pedal and only pressing it down to 60-80%, you could lower your brake pressure.

Lowering your brake pressure will apply less force to the brakes when you fully press the pedals. This in turn will allow you to press the brake pedal further, making braking feel much more normal during a wet race in F1 23.

The downside of lowering your brake pressure is that it can’t be adjusted mid-race. This means that if the rain stops and the track starts to dry out, you may struggle to slow your car down as the overall brake pressure will be lower.

Reducing the brake pressure will almost always make braking feel more natural and reduce the risk of locking a wheel in wet conditions. However, you should only really use this method when you are certain that the rain won’t stop or reduce.

---

Adjusting your throttle inputs

The next thing you’ll notice after the increased braking distance is the fact that if you apply the same amount of throttle pressure as you would in the dry, you will quickly spin your rear tyres and could lose control of your car.

The same method as above applies to improving your acceleration in wet conditions. You will need far less throttle input and pressure before your wheels lose traction and spin. This means you should be much more conservative on the throttle pedal in the rain in F1 23.

Short shifting

Other than adjusting the amount of throttle input you apply in the wet, you can also utilise a technique called short shifting to help reduce the likelihood of wheel spin.

Short shifting is the term given to changing up a gear earlier than you normally would. Instead of revving up to the optimal rev range before shifting, you shift earlier to dull the engine torque. This will, in turn, reduce the amount of power sent to your rear wheels, and make it easier to apply the throttle without your wheels spinning.

This is a great technique to use in the rain in F1 23, especially through slower corners where it is tricky to apply the power to a wet track.

---

On-throttle differential

One fantastic tool you have at your disposal to help reduce wheel spin under acceleration is your on-throttle differential. This is part of your car setup that can be adjusted both before and during a session.

The on-throttle differential controls how independently each of your rear wheels spin compared to each other. Higher settings will gradually lock the two rear wheels to spin at the same speed. If you lower your on-throttle differential, your wheels spin more independently of each other.

When your wheels spin at the same speed, it can cause an increased likelihood of breaking traction. When they spin at different speeds due to a low on-throttle differential setup, you have to work a lot harder to break traction, which in wet weather is a good thing.

This means that by lowering your on-throttle differential to 50% of close to it, you can prevent your rear wheels from spinning as easily. This will aid in helping you accelerate easier in wet weather in F1 23.

The great part of your on-throttle differential is that it is one part of your car setup that you can adjust mid-race. If the rain starts to fall harder, you can lower your on-throttle differential setup to reduce the risk of spinning your wheels.

And as it starts to dry up, you can increase your on-throttle differential back up to maximise your performance.

---

Don’t drive over kerbs

While the whole track will lose grip when the rain starts to fall, the kerbs and painted white lines will become even slipperier. This is because the surface of kerbs and the white lines around the track is often a relatively slick paint opposed to the grippy asphalt surface.

While in the dry, you will want to push the limits of the track to be faster which involves driving over kerbs. In the rain, however, the kerbs become your worse enemy. Kerbs with ridges often hold onto water much more than the track surface, as surface water will pool in uneven surfaces. They’ll be the slipperiest part of the track, and it is advised that you stay off them as much as you can.

This will result in you altering your racing line and driving more conservatively within the white lines. This will slow you down, but it is much more advisable for this than losing control of your car driving over a kerb.

---

Managing tyres

In dry conditions, you have the choice of three different tyres each with its own wear rate and grip limitations. There are two additional tyre compounds that are reserved for wet weather.

Intermediate tyres are used in light rain and incorporate a combination of slick surfaces and a few grooves to disperse water. These are ideal for when it starts to rain, or if it has stopped raining and the track is drying out.

Full wet tyres are the most extreme tyres available in F1 23 for the heaviest rain conditions. These feature a lot more grooves than intermediate tyres and are designed to clear as much surface water as possible.

These tyres should be used when the rain is at its heaviest and will provide the most amount of grip in wet conditions. They will however wear out faster than intermediate tyres if used on a drying track.

Deciding which wet tyre to use

The choice of both wet tyres can be taken at any time when the track is wet, however, both the intermediate and full wet tyres are very situational. Below are a few scenarios where each tyre shines.

Intermediate tyres are best for;

• Light rain.
• After the rain has ended and the track has dried slightly, but not enough for dry tyres.
• The track is slippery due to rain but not soaked.

Full wet tyres are best for;

• Heavy rain.
• Consistent long periods of medium to heavy rain.
• You are on intermediates and can feel you are losing grip.

Knowing when to change tyres

Deciding which tyre to be on for a wet race in F1 23 is one decision. However, you’ll also need to know when to change tyres mid-race. This call can be a difficult one to make, especially if the track is drying or if rain has just started to fall.

Do you switch on to intermediate tyres despite the rain getting heavier, or do you wait to switch on to full wet tyres and save yourself a pitstop?

There are a few factors that will decide when is the right time to change tyres;

• The level of grip you currently have
• The forecast for the incoming weather
• Your tyre temperatures

The level of grip is an easy decision to make, however, combined with the upcoming forecast and your current tyre temperatures, things get a little trickier.

Intermediate tyres and wet tyres are more prone to overheating in dry conditions than dry tyres. Wet tyres, in particular, are the most sensitive to heat, and can overheat quickly if the track starts to dry up.

If you are on full wet tyres and they are overheating, opting to change tyres is a good idea as the grip levels will fall away fast. If you are on intermediate tyres and they are too cool, then full wet tyres may be a better choice.

There are so many factors to think of when deciding when to pit in dynamic weather in F1 23. However, always pay attention to the upcoming forecast. If it’s raining heavily currently and about to stop soon, it may not be worth pitting for full wet tyres as you’ll need to pit again to change back off them very soon.

Quick tip – Use DRS as a guide to know when to change tyres

If you are unsure whether the track is dry enough to switch from wet or intermediate tyres to dry tyres, you can utilise DRS to tell if it is.

The DRS (drag reduction system) is only enabled when the track is considered dry enough to be race-able. It is automatically disabled when it starts to rain because it can be dangerous in wet conditions.

However, it is also automatically re-enabled when the track is deemed dry enough to race. If you are still on intermediate tyres when DRS gets enabled, chances are it’s dry enough to switch to dry slick tyres.

---

Consider playing F1 23 with a racing wheel

One way to gain more control in F1 23 is to use a racing wheel. A racing wheel allows for much more precise control over your inputs than racing with a controller does.

You have a wider range of input available due to the steering wheel and pedal range being much larger than an analogue stick or trigger. This allows for more precision with your inputs, giving greater levels of control.

View our recommended racing wheels for F1 23 in our detailed guide.

---