Taking into account the initial seven rounds of the 2023 Formula 1 campaign, the Canadian Grand Prix at the 4.361-kilometre Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve in Montreal proved to be the most encouraging race of 2023 for Red Bull’s rivals: Aston Martin, Mercedes, and Scuderia Ferrari.
Despite encountering issues that forced Fernando Alonso to lift and coast, he maintained a pace similar to that of the seemingly unbeatable Max Verstappen in the RB19.
Mercedes showcased their strong competitiveness on a track that was expected to challenge the W14, while the Maranello team recovered impressively after a disappointing qualifying session. However, it should be noted that the circuit was expected to favor the characteristics of the SF-23 single-seater, as explained by F1 expert Andrea Vergani for formu1a.uno.
The data analysis from Canada reaffirms some previously drawn conclusions while also providing fresh insights: in the midfield, Alpine underperformed on a track that was anticipated to highlight the potential of the A523. Since the Australian Grand Prix, Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly have often been on par with the Maranello team’s performance in terms of race pace on Sunday, but in Canada, the French car proved to be the sixth-fastest, trailing behind McLaren, who missed out on points because of a time penalty for Lando Norris.
The chaotic qualifying session on Saturday presented challenges for AlphaTauri, who failed to secure any points. However, Alfa Romeo managed to return to the top ten despite displaying relatively average race pace at the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve in Montreal.
Regarding the data analysis from the Canadian Grand Prix, it should be noted that wet qualifying, as witnessed on Saturday, hampers accurate data collection. In rapidly changing conditions, telemetry fails to provide a representative picture of the car’s performance and true potential.
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!
Based on the fastest laps during Sunday’s Canadian Grand Prix, Aston Martin demonstrated superiority in low-speed corners, specifically Turns 1, 6, and 10.
The AMR23 has made significant strides in terms of car efficiency, but Adrian Newey’s impressive single-seater boasts more downforce, which becomes evident in medium-speed corners. In these corners below 200 kilometers per hour, ex-Ferrari man Fernando Alonso faces a slight deficit of a few km/h.
Mercedes made an interesting strategic decision by using two sets of medium tires during the Canadian GP, which made the race pace of the W14 appear more competitive when compared to Aston Martin. In the final stint, Lewis Hamilton had a faster tire than his Spanish rival, adding complexity to interpreting and comparing the data.
Nonetheless, there was an evident improvement in the performance of the W14 in medium-speed corners, which was already observed in Barcelona.
The true potential of the W14 will be better showcased at the Red Bull Ring and, especially, at Silverstone, where the abundance of fast corners will highlight the car’s best technical characteristics from the Brackley team.
Scuderia Ferrari delivered their strongest performance of the 2023 Formula 1 campaign, although it did not translate into the final race result, with Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz having to settle for fourth and fifth place. This is not uncommon, as seen in last year’s Spanish and Monaco Grands Prix.
However, a single strong Sunday does not completely dispel doubts about the potential of the SF-23 project. The nature of the Gilles Villeneuve circuit, with its limited rear tire degradation and scarcity of medium-speed and high-speed corners, perfectly suited the characteristics of the Ferrari car.
The Maranello team demonstrated more competitiveness than Red Bull in low-speed corners but was slower than Aston Martin. In the fastest corners such as Turns 3, 8, and the chicane, the gap to the RB19 remained the same as in Melbourne.
A better understanding of the updates, combined with the circuit’s characteristics, helped narrow the gap to Max Verstappen by several tenths of a second.
However, a clearer picture of Ferrari’s progress will emerge at the Red Bull Ring and then in the British Grand Prix, especially considering that additional updates are planned for the Spielberg circuit in Austria.
Despite McLaren’s failure to secure points, the MCL60 performed well, particularly in low-speed corners where the strength of the car from Woking played a crucial role, giving them a slight advantage over their Alpine rivals. In Spain, Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly were only two-tenths behind the SF-23 car, but in the street circuit of Canada, data analysis reveals a gap of approximately six-tenths during the central stint, where Ocon and Charles Leclerc encountered no traffic issues.
Further down the field, Alfa Romeo and AlphaTauri emerged as the seventh and eighth-best teams, respectively, despite achieving vastly different results. The Swiss team’s pit wall capitalized on the early Safety Car period to keep Bottas on track, enabling him to finish the race in the points due to Norris’s penalty.
Meanwhile, Tsunoda had an eventful weekend, starting with a close encounter with Carlos Sainz at the last chicane and a three-position grid penalty. Additionally, he suffered from a slow pit stop, contributing to an unlucky race for the Japanese driver. Williams proved to be the ninth-placed team, but their exceptional straight-line speed allowed Alex Albon, who also had a strong qualifying performance, to secure a seventh-place finish and return to the points after the season opener in Bahrain.
Haas struggled to keep up with the competition once again. Despite an impressive qualifying by Hulkenberg, both he and his teammate gradually lost positions lap after lap during the race.
The VF-23, which follows a similar philosophy to Ferrari’s car, fails to translate its few strengths from qualifying into the race. The significant two-second deficit from the leading group serves as evidence of this limitation.
Leave a Reply