Scuderia Ferrari Spanish driver Carlos Sainz confirmed that the new rules and regulation introduced by the sport at the start of the 2022 championship represent a “right direction” for Formula 1, as the Ferrari man is confident the racing will continue to further improve in 2023 as more teams get the hang of the new rules and make a step forward with their car performance.
Formula 1 made one of the biggest technical rule changes with the all-new car concept for 2022, introducing cars which were designed based on the ground effect aerodynamics, overhauled bodywork and bigger tyres, while at the same time keeping the ultra-efficient 1.6-litre turbo-hybrid power units.
One of the main targets was for fans to see more track action by generating closer racing and providing drivers with more chances to attempt overtaking moves. Carlos Sainz – who secured his maiden pole position and Formula 1 race win this season, in the British Grand Prix at Silverstone – believes that the sport can be happy with how things went in 2022:
“I think Formula 1 got it right in principle. In general, I think these new cars have allowed us to race closer, to be able to overtake in places and corners or in circuits where before it was always more difficult, so I think the racing is more exciting,” said Carlos Sainz – “I think the field spread is still relatively big, but as soon as these regulations stabilise, I think we are all going to converge and the championship is just going to keep getting more and more interesting with the passing of the years and the races. I think it’s been the right direction.” – the Spaniard continued.
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French racing driver Pierre Gasly, who will be moving to Alpine from Scuderia AlphaTauri next season, shared the same view as Carlos Sainz when asked about this matter and pointed to factors such as the budget cap and sliding scale of wind tunnel time as key reasons that should lead to an even more interesting 2023 Formula 1 campaign, by reducing the performance gap between the top teams and the rear of the grid going forward.
“I think overall it’s been positive. I think in terms of racing we’ve seen more overtakes. In terms of driving-wise, it seems like it’s easier for us to follow on some tracks. So definitely on that side, I think they’ve been improving the sport. I was hoping that we could see a bit more variety in the finishing order, like in the top finishing orders, with maybe more midfield teams getting the chance to fight for podiums. Hopefully, this is something that can improve over the next couple of years and get the field closer together, have more teams fighting for podiums. You will always have one or two dominant teams, but at least, hopefully, with gaps not big enough not to give opportunities for the midfield to be in contention for podiums. I think that was one of the big targets. Hopefully with the wind tunnel time etcetera over the years, it’s going to merge towards a similar performance for most of the teams which, as a driver, will be the best for all of us to give us the chance to fight at the top.” – the 2016 GP2 Series champion concluded.
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