F1 is back and so am I.
F1 returned to Bahrain for a single 3 day pre-season test before the opening race at the same track next weekend. That’s not much time for the teams and drivers to get up to speed with their new machines.
There were many storylines to follow. Would Red Bull maintain their dominance or can Ferrari and Mercedes sort out their own issues to properly join the title fight? Can any of the midfield close the gap to the Big Three and can Williams hang on at the back?
But one thing is for sure, you can’t trust Pre-season testing times.
We are always going to be suckers to the timing charts in any F1 session but testing is particularly useless. With each team running their own programmes, with different fuel levels, tyre wear and engine modes it is nearly impossible to compare them properly. But if you look further than just the best times you can get an indication of how well set up each team is for the season ahead.
Red Bull
The reigning world champions seemed to have a seemless test. They ran well on all three days, completing over 400 laps and were able to extract speed from the car on all their runs. Sergio Perez set the fastest time of the whole test on day 3 but it was Verstappen who just exuded confidence. They will be hard to beat again this year, especially Max. As Toto Wolff has said, they can brake later, carry more speed through the corner and have great traction. That’s a great combination.
Ferrari
Ferrari aimed to fix their reliability issues that plagued them so much during last season. The speed was always present in the car but the drivers were rarely able to use it without issues. They had high tyre wear and had to turn their engine down mid season to protect the turbos. It will only come apparent if they have fixed their engine issues as the season gets going and its turned up to full capacity. It was obvious they were trying to understand their tyre wear issues during the pre-season as they used a low downforce rear wing, which is the opposite of suitable around the Bahrain track, and did lots of soft tyre runs. If they have fixed these two big issues, they should be able to challenge Red Bull. Leclerc has complained that this car is more suited to Sainz’s driving style so could Sainz be the favourite to challenge Red Bull?
Mercedes
Mercedes have definitely fixed their porpoising issues but the car still has balance issues that made them inconsistent last year. The car doesn’t seem quite on the level of the two teams above and even might have some challenge from another team for 3rd place, but more on that later. Both drivers have had good sessions during testing but also not so good sessions. Merc were also one of the teams to have a session ending mechanical issue – hydraulics in their case. I would expect them to be in contention for podiums again but not wins at the moment. They are really giving this no-sidepod design a good go but if they don’t start to see results soon, they have indicated they will switch to Plan-B.
Alpine
Alpine had one of the quietest pre-seasons but rumblings in the paddock are that they are one to watch. They didn’t use any of the ‘soft’ C4 or C5 tyres so they won’t be high up the timing charts. But remember – Pre-season times don’t matter. It’s the long run times and reliability that are the main references. Alpine ran well and the car looked consistent but nothing special. They admitted they did a lot of experimenting to find the limits of the car and have an upgrade coming for the first race so it’s even harder to place them. The car will look different when things ramp up. I expect them to be in the fight for 4th but the gap is too big to close to the front three over one winter, especially while everyone figures out how to best work the budget cap.
McLaren
Another preseason struggle for the McLaren team. Last year it was brake issues and this year it was wheel barrows. No, not the gardening tool but the aerodynamic devices that arch over the front wheels. The structure holding them in place wasn’t strong enough so it really limited their running which is a killer in this era of F1 where testing for the year has already been completed. The Woking team completed the fewest laps over the 3 days and didn’t show much pace when they were on track. Let’s hope this wheel issue is a simple fix and they have pace in the car they weren’t able to show.
Alfa Romeo
Alfa had a mixed test, they topped Day 2 after a late glory run by Zhou but did stop on track twice. I noticed that they have switched to a Mercedes style steering wheel, obviously Bottas’ influence is being felt more on this car than its predecessor. I would expect to find Alfa Romeo right in the midfield battle but not at the front of it. Loved Bottas’ test helmet, he should keep it.
Aston Martin
Aston Martin were THE talking point of the Bahrain test. There were grumblings coming out of Silverstone that the wind tunnel data looked good and the on-track action backed that up. No matter what, it is a big upgrade on last year’s car, which was probably the 2nd worst until they found pace in the 2nd half of the season. Alonso coming over to the team will give everyone a boost and make sure that the maximum will be extracted from it at all times. There will be no confusion about where they sit in the pecking order with him behind the wheel. They didn’t do any performance runs late in the day but were constantly around the top five in the long runs and didn’t have any reliability issues that we saw. Ted Kravitz pointed out that on Day 3, the long run pace was Red Bulls first and then Aston Martin. They could be the biggest jumpers in the pecking order this year and get involved with Mercedes for 3rd. BUT, we have seen teams do really well in testing before and not show that pace when it matters. Luckily, we only have less than a week before we find out.
Haas
Nico Hulkenberg comes in to partner ex-rival Kevin Magnussen at Haas for 2023. In these two, they have solidly quick and experienced drivers to keep the team moving forward. Unfortunately for Mick Schumacher he crashed a bit too much so that will be Hulkenberg’s first requirement – keep it out of the barriers. Haas had a good pre-season as well. They ran consistently – racking up 414 laps which was fourth best and only had a minor throttle issue on Day 1 that caused a delay. This car looks like a great base for the team and now they have a title sponsor, they can actually spend their whole budget, which they have never been able to do. They shouldn’t be left behind in the development race this year.
Alpha Tauri
Alpha Tauri logged the most laps during pre-season with 456 which gave rookie Nick de Vries plenty of running to get up to speed. While not headline grabbing, I think this was a good three days for them. The car looks reliable and getting de Vries up to speed ASAP will be key for them in the Constructor’s fight. They have an intriguing driver line-up, I have high hopes for de Vries and he should push Tsunoda to prove his speed now he is the more experienced driver. No hiding places for either of them.
Williams
Williams logged the second most laps in preseason with 439 and the car is definitely an improvement on last years, but that’s not too hard. I thought Rookie Logan Sargent looked comfortable in the car and both drivers showed pace over the three days. I think that is all Williams were looking for in this test, that the car can give them a good base to join the midfield and develop from there. They are probably still at the back but will be much closer to the rest of the field this year.
So moving into the first race of the year, here’s what I think the pecking order is, not that it matters:
Red Bull
Ferrari
Mercedes
Aston Martin
Alpine
Haas
Alpha Romeo
McLaren
Alpha Tauri
Williams
The Perfect Formula 