This weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix at the Spa-Francorchamps track will see a new Technical Directive come into effect as the FIA wants to take action in order to reduce porpoising, officially in the interest of drivers’ safety. For now, team bosses from the likes of Alpine, Scuderia Ferrari and Red Bull insisted that they are not worried by the changes they may have to make starting with the next weekend.
At circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, the Formula 1 teams will face closer scrutiny of the planks and skids under their cars to make sure that they aren’t wearing too much, and as a result that the drivers aren’t facing excessive “vertical oscillations” – bouncing or porpoising – which some feel could have a negative effect on their safety in the long term.
This situation has come to the fore during the new era of Formula 1 as ground effect cars have seen the porpoising phenomenon – violent bouncing caused by a loss and gain of downforce on the straights – return.
Ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix, Sky Sports F1’s Mark Hughes shares his thoughts on the upcoming technical directive and how it could impact the teams:
“With quite a different upper body aero concept to Red Bull and Ferrari, Mercedes’ greater area of exposed floor was effectively a cantilever, making it much more difficult to control. Later, limitations in the mechanical aspects of the suspension became apparent in controlling the car’s ride. It then became clear that Ferrari and Red Bull had interpreted the regulations concerning the mounting of the underfloor plank differently and were able to allow the plank to sink further into the floor as it touched the ground, giving a cushioning effect to the ride. From Spa this weekend, that interpretation will no longer be considered valid.” – he explained.
Show your support for Scuderia Ferrari with official merchandise collection from Puma! Enter the online Puma Store and shop securely! And 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!
“If, as is believed by other teams, that mounting method would make a 5-6mm lower rear ride height feasible, it would potentially be worth around 0.2-0.3s of lap time. The Mercedes, even though it set pole in Hungary due to a favourable set of circumstances (no healthy Red Bulls in Q3, Ferrari way out of the tyre temperature window), was still around 0.5s off the ultimate pace. So the Spa TD could well help Mercedes reduce its deficit to the front, but to take on Ferrari and Red Bull on equal terms is likely going to require more development.” – the Sky Sports F1 expert concluded.
Leave a Reply