Shanghai layout analysis amid complicated Pirelli warm-up strategy

The Shanghai International Circuit is ready to welcome Formula One after an absence of 5 years and this weekend will host the fifth round of the 2024 F1 championship, the Chinese Grand Prix. Due to the well-known circumstances related to Covid-19, the Chinese Republic has repeatedly canceled the event after hosting the thousandth Grand Prix of the top category of motorsport. Following this prolonged absence, in the upcoming weekend, we will see different cars compared to those that hit the track back in 2019. These are factors that, combined with the Sprint Race format, describe the eastern scenario as one of the most difficult in the first part of the 2024 Formula 1 season. In particular, one fact should be emphasized.

As many as five drivers have never seen the Chinese racing track and the experienced drivers have raced with cars completely different from today’s. Therefore, the teams do not have a lot of useful data in order to evaluate the ideal configuration and setup for the Shanghai weekend. This is also due to the limited time available to test the cars, considering there is only one hour of free practice available. The Chinese Grand Prix therefore becomes a very important weekend in terms of the correlation between simulators and the track, that will help us understand which teams will arrive on Friday with their homework well done.

Scuderia Ferrari will once again have the opportunity to close the gap with Red Bull, thanks to a circuit that should adapt very well to the characteristics of the SF-24, especially compared to the previous round at the Suzuka circuit. The Maranello team’s car is skilled in high-speed corners and has significantly improved in tire management compared to the past Formula 1 season. Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, moreover, will be able to count on good aerodynamic efficiency, as demonstrated by the data collected on track at the Suzuka circuit during the recent trip to Japan.

The Shanghai International Circuit unfolds over a total length of 5451 meters and consists of 16 corners: 9 right and 7 left. The race will be developed over 54 laps, for a total of about 305 kilometers, while in the F1 Sprint, drivers will cover 18 laps. The multiple high-speed corners, combined with the continuous start-and-stop sections where traction is required, indicate that the probable strategy for Sunday will be a two-stop strategy. Pirelli brings to China the same compounds as 5 years ago, opting for the central range of its tires: C2 Hard, C3 Medium, and C4 Soft.

The engineers of the various teams will try to optimize the set-up of the cars between performance on straights, reducing slip angle with a high quantity of fuel on board, and absolute performance in corners: these are difficult and different “equations” for which it is almost impossible to identify a single solution that can “satisfy” the car’s setup purely from an aeromechanical point of view, especially considering the limited amount of data available in the hands of technicians and engineers.

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Chinese GP 2024/Analysis S1: Different trajectories in turn 1. Complicated tire thermal management.

During the push lap, cars cross the finish line at a speed just below 300 kilometers per hour with drag reduction system open. Turn 1 is the most complicated but at the same time seems quite open to interpretation, allowing for different but effective driving lines to be chosen. By analyzing the telemetry data collected from the last time Formula 1 raced in Shanghai , back in the 2019 championship, we can see that drivers use the brake and accelerator in the way that suits them best and choose different trajectories as mentioned. In general, however, the apex is found at the beginning of the kerb, and only near the apex do drivers start to brake.

We are talking about a period of about 7/8 seconds in full load that significantly increases tire temperatures. Therefore, in the warm-up strategy, it will be very important to prepare the tires more on their inner part through braking, keeping the carcass temperature below the ideal window. Similarly, in turn 3, the apex is anticipated to press the gas pedal as early as possible. Subsequently, the entire width of the track is used on the exit to reach the highest speed on the straight towards turn 6.

Chinese GP 2024/Analysis S2: Light rear favors oversteer. Turn 8 requires combined braking.

At the beginning of the central sector, drivers brake at the 100-meter sign, reducing the speed of the Formula 1 cars by about 200 kilometers per hour and taking the apex of the bend. On the exit, mechanical grip at the rear and the hybrid’s traction force are exploited. Then begins the section comprising the fastest corners of the Shanghai circuit. Turn 7 could be taken flat out, with drivers enduring high lateral “G” forces before using the brake, with a slight steering angle, before turn 8.

The minimum speed at the center of this corner is around 180 kilometers per hour, and drivers struggle with acceleration with a light rear end close to oversteer. Turn 9 again requires an early apex. The main goal is to control understeer as much as possible, mainly due to overheating tires. On the exit, drivers seek a steering angle as linear as possible, allowing them to tackle turn 10 in a single solution.

Chinese GP 2024/Analysis S3: Critical exit of turn 12. 5.5G deceleration at turn 14.

With the braking for turn 11, the final sector begins. Drivers press the brake pedal at the beginning of the kerb, on the right, corresponding to the sign indicating 100 meters. The cars slow down by about 200 kilometers per hour, and it’s important to have a car capable of changing direction smoothly and not too stiff to handle turn 12. On the exit, one must control a car first understeering and then oversteering.

The accelerator must be pressed as soon as possible in order to tackle the straight of about 1.2 kilometers leading to the braking for turn 14, the most demanding of the Chinese Formula 1 circuit. To slow down the car, approximately 250 kilograms of pressure on the brake pedal is required, resulting in a total deceleration of about 5.5g. Braking starts at 120 meters before the corner, reducing the wing car’s speed by 250 kilometers per hour in less than 3 seconds. On the exit, the apex is taken, and it’s necessary to control the rear, which easily becomes oversteering.

Carlos Sainz, Ferrari SF-24