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Written by Nina Rogerson
Image via Formula 1
After almost 12 weeks, we finally got our first taste of the 2023 season of Formula 1 at the pre-season Bahrain test last weekend. The teams had all launched their new cars and were ready to put them to test on track. With three full days of testing there was a lot of data to look at, but here’s what stood out to us from what we learned over the weekend.
Red Bull still look like the favourites for the year.
Red Bull still look like the favourites for the year.
Unsurprisingly, Red Bull are leading the pack once again after testing. The new RB19 looked like it was more of an evolution as opposed to any new radical updates but, as reigning champions this is understandable; if it’s not broken, why fix it?
The confidence felt by the team was apparent just by looking at their running order for the test. Unlike any of the other teams, Red Bull ran Max Verstappen for the first full day and the morning of the second day whilst Sergio Perez completed the afternoon of the second day and ran the full third day. This shows just how confident the team are as generally, both drivers run during the last day of testing as this is when the team searches for performance through soft compounds and fast laps.
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Ferrari look like Red Bull’s biggest challengers.
Ferrari look like Red Bull’s biggest challengers.
It’s no secret that Ferrari’s 2022 campaign did not go as smoothly as they would have hoped, however, their three-day test ran efficiently and hiccup-free which they will be hoping to carry over into the start of the season.
Sources suggest that the improvements they’ve made in terms of reliability on the power unit could potentially give them about 0.2 – 0.3s per lap. It does seem that Ferrari have been playing it down over the weekend but there’s no denying that it’s been a good test for the Italian outfit.
The reliability revised Ferrari power unit has also been a positive feature of the test for Alfa Romeo as this combined with their new chassis, that looks as though it’s responding well, suggests that they could be leading the midfield this season.
Mercedes and Aston Martin look evenly matched.
Mercedes and Aston Martin look evenly matched.
Mercedes look as if they are third in the pecking order after the test but they are very closely followed by a surprising Aston Martin package. Aston Martin stood out on day 1 due to Fernando Alonso’s lap time that matched their quickest qualifying lap from 2022 – none of the other teams got close to their 2022 qualifying times.
There were early signs that Mercedes have eradicated their porpoising problem that hindered them in 2022, “There’s no bouncing which is good news – apart from that big bump at the end of the straight! It’s a good starting point” said team principal Toto Wolff.
Alpine are quietly confident and hiding their true pace.
Alpine are quietly confident and hiding their true pace.
Alpine were the hardest team to read throughout the test as they were the slowest of the ten teams and were the only team to go slower than they did in the Bahrain test last year. On paper, this would make it very easy to assume that they’ve regressed dramatically since last year.
However, team principle Otmar Szafnauer is “quietly confident”, and the rest of the team would agree so it does seem that Alpine’s test went far better than the numbers would suggest.
Image via Formula 1
Image via Formula 1
McLaren might find it difficult to top the rest of the midfield.
McLaren might find it difficult to top the rest of the midfield.
As a whole, the test was not a successful one for McLaren. They lost a lot of time on both Thursday and Saturday due to wheel brow and bodywork repairs, so they’re already at a disadvantage going into the first race weekend of 2023.
This all feels like a bit of déjà vu from last year when reliability problems were causing the team a lot of trouble and so far, it doesn’t look like they’ve fixed it.
Haas are pleased with their winter and hopeful for the season.
Haas are pleased with their winter and hopeful for the season.
Haas are showing all the signs of being a solid midfielder. There were no problems with reliability and the car doesn’t seem to be showing any major weaknesses.
It has been suggested by a senior source over at Haas that they’ve completed their best winter yet in terms of car build and preparation. The team are hoping that these preparations will lead to them being able to fight for points on a much more consistent basis throughout the season.
AlphaTauri have not made the step forward they had hoped to.
AlphaTauri have not made the step forward they had hoped to.
AlphaTauri completed the most amount of laps out of any team over the three days of testing but it was not the test they would have hoped to see.
Rookie Nyck De Vries struggled with understeering during his runs in the car, which seems to be very reminiscent of the overweight 2022 car. It does look like they’ve made a step forward in the lack of grip in high-speed corners that they experienced last year, so they could very well make the most of their still limited package.
Image via Formula 1
Williams are better but still have work to do.
Williams are better but still have work to do.
The British team completed one of their best ever testing days in recent history on day two when they topped the lap count table with a total of 154 laps between their two drivers.
The team are showing a lot of optimism and both Alex Albon and Logan Sargeant reported that this year’s car has much better balance compared to last years. This improvement and the confidence felt by the team mean that Williams could be a part of the midfield and potentially fight for Q3 spots.
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