Telemetry Data

Overview

Telemetry data provides second-by-second insights into car performance and driver behavior. This data is sampled at approximately 3.7 Hz (~270ms intervals) and captures everything from engine RPM to 3D position coordinates.

Telemetry data is the most granular dataset in the platform, enabling detailed analysis of driving lines, braking points, throttle application, and g-force distribution through corners.

File Location

Telemetry files are organized by driver and lap number:

Pre-Season Testing 2/Practice 3/{DRIVER_CODE}/{LAP_NUMBER}_tel.json

Example:

Pre-Season Testing 2/Practice 3/VER/9_tel.json - Verstappen’s 9th lap telemetry
Pre-Season Testing 2/Practice 3/SAI/15_tel.json - Sainz’s 15th lap telemetry

Data Structure

The JSON file contains a single tel object with arrays of synchronized measurements:

{
  "tel": {
    "time": [0.0, 0.071, 0.265, ...],
    "rpm": [12120, 12180, 12240, ...],
    "speed": [289, 290, 291, ...],
    "gear": [8, 8, 8, ...],
    "throttle": [100, 100, 100, ...],
    "brake": [0, 0, 0, ...],
    "drs": [14, 14, 14, ...],
    "distance": [0.0, 5.6, 20.8, ...],
    "rel_distance": [0.0, 0.001, 0.004, ...],
    "x": [-1234.5, -1230.2, ...],
    "y": [5432.1, 5438.7, ...],
    "z": [12.3, 12.5, ...],
    "acc_x": [0.5, 0.3, -2.1, ...],
    "acc_y": [-15.2, -14.8, -15.5, ...],
    "acc_z": [0.1, 0.2, 0.3, ...],
    "DriverAhead": ["44", "44", "44", ...],
    "DistanceToDriverAhead": [234.5, 235.1, ...],
    "dataKey": "2026-PreSeasonTesting1-Practice3-VER-9"
  }
}

Field Reference

Basic Car Metrics

time

array<number>

required

Time in seconds from the start of the lap. Sampling occurs at ~270ms intervals (3.7 Hz).Example: [0.0, 0.071, 0.265, 0.311, ...]

rpm

array<number>

required

Engine revolutions per minute. Higher on straights, lower in corners. Modern F1 engines are limited to 15,000 RPM.Unit: RPM
Range: 0-15,000
Example: [12120, 12180, 12240, ...]

speed

array<number>

required

Car velocity derived from GPS and telemetry sources.Unit: km/h
Range: 0-350+
Example: [289, 290, 291, 285, ...]

gear

array<number>

required

Current transmission gear. F1 cars use 8-speed sequential gearboxes.Range: 1-8
Example: [8, 8, 7, 6, 5, ...]

throttle

array<number>

required

Throttle pedal position as a percentage.Unit: % (percentage)
Range: 0-100 (0% = fully released, 100% = fully depressed)
Example: [100, 100, 85, 0, ...]

brake

array<number>

required

Binary brake application indicator.Values: 0 (not braking) or 1 (braking)
Example: [0, 0, 0, 1, 1, 1, 0, ...]

drs

array<number>

required

Drag Reduction System status. DRS opens a flap in the rear wing to reduce drag on straights.Values:

0, 1 - DRS closed/unavailable
10, 12, 14 - DRS open/active

Example: [0, 0, 14, 14, 14, 0, ...]

distance

array<number>

required

Cumulative distance traveled since the start of the lap. Monotonically increasing.Unit: meters
Example: [0.0, 5.6, 20.8, 45.3, ...]

rel_distance

array<number>

required

Relative distance as a normalized value where 0.0 represents the first sample and 1.0 represents the last sample of the lap.Range: 0.0-1.0
Example: [0.0, 0.001, 0.004, 0.009, ..., 1.0]

Driver and Car Ahead Information

DriverAhead

array<string|null>

The car number of the driver directly ahead in race order.Example: ["44", "44", "44", null, ...]

DistanceToDriverAhead

array<number|null>

Gap to the car ahead in meters.Unit: meters
Example: [234.5, 235.1, 240.3, null, ...]

Acceleration Vectors (G-Forces)

Acceleration values are computed by the extraction script using gradient analysis of position, speed, and distance data. These are NOT raw IMU sensor values—they are mathematically derived and include smoothing and outlier handling.

acc_x

array<number>

required

Longitudinal acceleration (forward/backward along track).Computation: ax = gradient(v_ms) / gradient(time) where v_ms = speed / 3.6Outlier handling: Values > 25 m/s² are replaced with the previous sample’s valueSmoothing: 3-point moving averageUnit: m/s²
Example: [0.5, 0.3, -2.1, -8.5, ...] (negative = braking, positive = acceleration)

acc_y

array<number>

required

Lateral acceleration (side-to-side, horizontal forces in corners).Computation: ay = v² × C where C = dθ / (ds + 0.0001), θ = arctan2(dy, dx), phase-unwrappedOutlier handling:

Stage 1: If |dθ| > 0.5 rad/sample, replace with previous value
Stage 2: Hard-zero if |ay| > 150 m/s² (~15G)

Smoothing: 9-point moving averageUnit: m/s²
Example: [-15.2, -14.8, -15.5, -12.3, ...] (lateral g-forces through corners)

acc_z

array<number>

required

Vertical acceleration (up/down, elevation changes).Computation: az = v² × C_z where C_z = dθ_z / (ds + 0.0001), θ_z = arctan2(dz, dx), phase-unwrappedOutlier handling:

Stage 1: If |dθ_z| > 0.5 rad/sample, replace with previous value
Stage 2: Hard-zero if |az| > 150 m/s² (~15G)

Smoothing: 9-point moving averageUnit: m/s²
Example: [0.1, 0.2, -0.3, 1.2, ...] (bumps, kerbs, elevation)

Position Data (3D Coordinates)

Position data is interpolated from GPS measurements to align with the higher-frequency car data (~240ms intervals for car data, ~220ms for position data).

array<number>

required

Horizontal X position on the track (left-right axis).Unit: meters
Example: [-1234.5, -1230.2, -1225.8, ...]

array<number>

required

Horizontal Y position on the track (forward-backward axis).Unit: meters
Example: [5432.1, 5438.7, 5445.3, ...]

array<number>

required

Vertical height above track surface. Captures kerbs, jumps, and elevation changes.Unit: meters
Example: [12.3, 12.5, 12.4, 12.8, ...]

Metadata

dataKey

string

required

Unique identifier linking this telemetry data to a specific driver and lap.Format: Year-EventName-Session-DriverCode-LapNumberExamples:

"2026-PreSeasonTesting1-Practice3-VER-9"
"2025-United States Grand Prix-Race-HAM-42"

For 2026 Pre-Season Testing, the format uses ‘PreSeasonTesting1’ instead of ‘Pre-Season Testing 1’.

Real Data Example

Here’s an actual sample from Max Verstappen’s 9th lap in Pre-Season Testing 2, Practice 3:

{
  "tel": {
    "time": [0.0, 0.071, 0.265, 0.311, 0.551, 0.605],
    "rpm": [12120, 12180, 12240, 12255, 12285, 12300],
    "speed": [289, 290, 291, 292, 293, 293],
    "gear": [8, 8, 8, 8, 8, 8],
    "throttle": [100, 100, 100, 100, 100, 100],
    "brake": [0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0],
    "drs": [14, 14, 14, 14, 14, 14],
    "distance": [0.0, 5.6, 20.8, 25.1, 44.5, 48.8],
    "rel_distance": [0.0, 0.001, 0.004, 0.005, 0.009, 0.010],
    "x": [-1234.5, -1230.2, -1220.8, -1218.3, -1209.1, -1205.6],
    "y": [5432.1, 5438.7, 5451.9, 5455.4, 5468.6, 5472.1],
    "z": [12.3, 12.5, 12.4, 12.6, 12.8, 12.7],
    "acc_x": [0.5, 0.3, -0.2, -0.1, 0.2, 0.1],
    "acc_y": [-1.2, -1.5, -1.3, -1.1, -0.9, -1.0],
    "acc_z": [0.1, 0.2, -0.1, 0.3, 0.2, 0.1],
    "DriverAhead": ["44", "44", "44", "44", "44", "44"],
    "DistanceToDriverAhead": [234.5, 235.1, 236.2, 236.8, 238.1, 238.7],
    "dataKey": "2026-PreSeasonTesting1-Practice3-VER-9"
  }
}

Use Cases

Performance Analysis

Braking Points: Identify where drivers brake by analyzing brake, speed, and distance
Throttle Application: Compare throttle traces between drivers through corners
Cornering Speed: Analyze speed, acc_y, and gear through specific corners
DRS Efficiency: Measure speed delta with DRS open vs. closed on straights

Driver Comparison

Racing Lines: Overlay x, y, z coordinates to visualize different racing lines
G-Force Distribution: Compare lateral (acc_y) and longitudinal (acc_x) forces
Gear Selection: Analyze gear choices through identical track sections
Wheel-to-Wheel Racing: Use DriverAhead and DistanceToDriverAhead to analyze battles

Engineering Insights

Engine Performance: Monitor rpm and throttle correlation
Tire Degradation: Compare speed and cornering forces across lap stints
Setup Optimization: Identify understeer/oversteer through acceleration patterns
Track Evolution: Analyze how optimal lines change throughout the session

Lap Times - Aggregate lap and sector timing
Weather - Track and air temperature affecting performance
Corners - Track corner positions for spatial analysis
Drivers - Driver information and team affiliations

Core Data Types

Field Specifications

Overview

File Location

Data Structure

Field Reference

Basic Car Metrics

Driver and Car Ahead Information

Acceleration Vectors (G-Forces)

Position Data (3D Coordinates)

Metadata

Real Data Example

Use Cases

Performance Analysis

Driver Comparison

Engineering Insights

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Core Data Types

Field Specifications

​Overview

​File Location

​Data Structure

​Field Reference

​Basic Car Metrics

​Driver and Car Ahead Information

​Acceleration Vectors (G-Forces)

​Position Data (3D Coordinates)

​Metadata

​Real Data Example

​Use Cases

​Performance Analysis

​Driver Comparison

​Engineering Insights

​Related Pages

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Overview

File Location

Data Structure

Field Reference

Basic Car Metrics

Driver and Car Ahead Information

Acceleration Vectors (G-Forces)

Position Data (3D Coordinates)

Metadata

Real Data Example

Use Cases

Performance Analysis

Driver Comparison

Engineering Insights

Related Pages