John N
The first day of pre-season testing for the 2022 Formula One season was held at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. It provided us with some very interesting data points regarding the current state of play in Formula One and how the drivers are getting a feel of the all-new 2022 car and the new regulations.
If the previous preseason is anything to go by, the lap times, with a variety of programs, fuel loads and aero rakes don’t matter. But there are still a few things we’ve learned…
- New Cars Prove Reliable
The new cars are completely different from their predecessors, so sweeping are the changes to the technical regulations. It can be hard to predict how teams will fare, as Ferrari topped the lap chart with 153 laps. Only Alfa Romeo and Haas missed out on a century of laps – by some distance. It was bright and clear – not that cold for this time of year in Barcelona – throughout, making it lovely conditions to give the cars a first proper run-out.
Teams’ goals today were to log many laps, complete a flurry of system checks, and see how the cars react to a series of big setup changes. This gives teams plenty of data on these brand-new cars, which they’ll pore over and be ready to take it up a notch on day 2 of the preseason. There was no chasing outright performance, so the timesheets are irrelevant.
- Learning Curve For Drivers
When you get behind the wheel of a new F1 car, the cockpit feels completely different than what you’re used to. The visibility is greatly reduced because of the larger tires, which necessitate larger side mirrors and a canopy-like front wing known as the halo. But after some time adapting, it’s just like being in an office on wheels.
“You have to use a lot of your intuition—well, your other instincts—when you’re racing side by side,” McLaren driver Lando Norris told Racer. “But it sometimes creates the art of a good battle. You adjust to it, and after a few races it feels normal.”
- Red Bull Unveiling
Red Bull completed a shakedown at Silverstone with little fanfare, so it wasn’t surprising to see plenty of photographers jostling for a position outside the garage when the team removed the screens to reveal the car just moments before the session began. The car was strikingly different from any other machine in the field. Max Verstappen then got straight down to business by clocking 147 laps, which is more than two Grand Prix distances. It’s early days, of course, but Verstappen declared this a good opening outing, with everything “working quite well”. This was a strong day of data collection for the four-time world champion team.
- Hamilton Playing Detective
Lewis Hamilton may be leading the world championship standings, but it’s his fans who have been on the back foot this week after the Mercedes driver took to his investigation of rival teams in Barcelona. Dressed in a hoodie – hood up – and a long trench coat, Hamilton spent a reasonable amount of time outside Red Bull, whose ‘real’ RB18 made its public debut in Barcelona, before heading back to watching teammate George Russell in action. Ahead of stepping into the car in the afternoon, Hamilton – who was pipped to an eighth world title by Max Verstappen in Abu Dhabi – spoke to the media in the opening press conference. He said he was feeling the “freshest that I ever have” and that the last winter break was one of the best I’ve ever experienced. He then ticked off a half-century of laps before the team called it a day.
- HAAS and AlphaTauri Lagging Behind
Before pre-season testing, teams iron out any kinks in their new cars—and with time in the garage limited to minimize costs, you can expect some unexpected delays. Haas and Alfa Romeo will be frustrated that the gremlins limited them to 43 and 32 laps respectively. Nikita Mazepin managed just 20 laps, with a cooling leak limiting his track time. His Haas teammate Mick Schumacher spent a lot of the afternoon sitting on the tool cabinets wearing his beanie while a damaged floor was repaired. It was more frustrating for Alfa Romeo, who had a series of minor problems that, while small, proved “quite costly in terms of time” according to recruit Valtteri Bottas. The good news is that Finn says that “luckily we understand them completely and we know how to fix them”. With just two days in Barcelona and three days of official testing in Bahrain remaining, they’ll be hoping the only way is up from here.
