There was a lot of anticipation for the Barcelona weekend due to the significant upgrades Scuderia Ferrari would bring at the Circuit de Catalunya. These upgrades include a new floor and completely revised sidepods. The technicians from Maranello have revolutionized the SF23, making it a mix between the previous version and Red Bull’s solutions. On Friday, the drivers seemed satisfied with the work, although a victory appears to be out of reach.
On the other hand, Red Bull remains ahead of everyone, but only with the reigning World Champion’s car. Sergio Perez was unable to be effective in both qualifying runs and race pace simulations. Aston Martin arrives in Barcelona with a new front wing, keeping themselves in the group of teams fighting for second place in the constructors’ championship. In the recorded race pace in Spain, Mercedes is slightly behind Ferrari, with the new W14 that still needs to be fully understood by the engineers at the Silver Arrows.
Race pace simulation performance
Taking a first look at the graph, it is clear that Max Verstappen’s times with the soft tires are unreachable for everyone else. The Dutchman is gentle on the soft compound used for six laps and records the best time on his final lap (1:18:679). The World Champion is also very fast in the early part of his stint with the medium tires (orange line). It is hypothesized that he had a higher fuel load in the car compared to the latter part of the second free practice session. Unlike the times analyzed later, Max Verstappen’s times progressively improve as the laps go on. The Dutchman’s stint begins with a used set of medium tires for 6 laps, totaling nine laps on the yellow-banded compound.
At Ferrari, Carlos Sainz seemed the most comfortable. Both the Spanish driver and Charles Leclerc recorded significant times on the red tires. Overall, #55 shows a relatively consistent trend in his lap times, while Charles Leclerc’s performance fluctuated. #16 completed a total of 12 laps compared to the Spaniard’s six. Ferrari’s race pace is encouraging as both cars were faster than Mercedes, with Carlos Sainz outperforming Fernando Alonso. If the Scuderia can confirm these performances in the race, they could aim for a podium finish. Fernando Alonso, on the other hand, set good times overall, but his AMR23 did not seem comfortable. The Barcelona circuit, with its fast corners and long main straight, is not the best fit for Aston Martin. However, the AMR23 is a complete car and will be fully involved in the fight for the podium at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.
Show your support for Scuderia Ferrari with official merchandise collection! Click here to enter the F1 online Store and shop securely! And also get your F1 tickets for every race with VIP hospitality and unparalleled insider access. Click here for the best offers to support Charles and Carlos from the track!
After revolutionizing the W14, Mercedes is now in the phase of understanding the car. The Monaco weekend is not indicative of a car’s absolute performance, while in Spain, both the engineers and drivers will have a clearer picture. The lap times of the Brackley drivers are superior to Ferrari’s but still within range. Both Lewis Hamilton and George Russell tested the race pace on the red tires. Since FP1, the drivers have complained about bouncing issues in the last two corners. The Barcelona circuit has been modified this year in the third sector, with the chicane being removed.
Carlos Sainz’s average time is significantly better than Fernando Alonso’s. Clearly, the fuel loads are unknown, but to highlight the good performance of the Scuderia, Charles Leclerc is only 50 milliseconds behind the Aston Martin man. The Monegasque had only one hour to test the updated car, so it’s understandable that Charles Leclerc is somewhat behind his Maranello teammate. Surprisingly, but in a negative sense, Sergio Perez stands out. The Mexican driver is 1.6 seconds behind his teammate. The #11 car didn’t seem comfortable, perhaps indicating some damage to the floor.
Leave a Reply