Leclerc vs Verstappen vs Hamilton: telemetry comparison from Bahrain qualifying. Telemetry comparison from Bahrain qualifying.

Thanks to the graph produced by by telemetry on the triple comparison (Charles Leclerc vs Max Verstappen vs Lewis Hamilton), we have several aspects to look at. Starting with Red Bull, we immediately notice a fact. The Milton Keynes team, in addition to refining the aerodynamic level of the Austrian car at the rear, has made a big step forward in terms of power. The Honda “size zero” PU has granted higher levels of downforce, relying on a good handful of horses more than last season.

Looking at the speed on slow corners, Mercedes and Ferrari have a slight delta. Overall, the straight speed of all three cars is still good. Looking at the data relating to the gear changes, the different choice regarding the use of the gears that the 3 drivers use jumps into view. Max and Lewis, in some places, prefer a lower gear than Charles, in order to have a more aggressive car when accelerating. An interesting fact must be recorded on Hamilton. The British driver tends to delay the shift, in contrast to what we have been used to seeing throughout the past season. On this point we will keep our eyes open, to understand if it is a factor linked to the Bahrain track or if something has actually changed in the Mercedes transmission.

The graphs relating to the RPMs of the different power units are also very interesting. Thanks to telemetry, in fact, we can see the unique revolutions of the Mercedes engine. This fact, as mentioned above, is closely linked to the use of transmission. Speaking instead of the mappings, let’s see how the Brackley team has studied an ad-hoc solution, useful for qualifying but above all for the race.

Ultimately, examining the accelerator data in the first part of the Sakhir track , we note how Verstappen and Hamilton, compared to the Monegasque’s Ferrari, have slightly lifted their foot off the pedal in facing the first series of corners. In this respect, the partialization carried out in the rapid series of curves 5-6-7, with Verstappen having to raise his foot up to 65% , is also very indicative.