Hold the clutch. Five red lights come on, one per second. They hold. Then they go out, and the clock starts. Let go the instant they do.
A Formula 1 start is usually around 0.2 seconds. Anything under 0.15s off a genuine reaction is exceptional. Under 0.1s the FIA treats it as a jump start, on the grounds that nobody reacts that quickly, so this test does the same.
A driver on the grid is already in first gear with the engine at pre-start revs, holding the clutch paddle in. Lights out is not a signal to press something. It is a signal to let go, dropping the clutch to its bite point while feeding in the throttle. So this test measures a release, not a tap, and letting go while the lights are still on is a jump start exactly as it would be on a real grid.
The real thing is harder than this. A start is clutch bite point, wheelspin and where you are looking, all at once. The lights are only the part everyone can practise.
Reaction time gets you off the line. It does not get you a seat. In Chasing P1 you start at sixteen and find out how far your choices take you: which team to sign for, when to move, when to take the blame.
Play Chasing P1 →