FERRARI WINS IN AUSTRALIA WITH BRAINS AND A HINT OF BRAWN

April 14, 2022
Admin
Formula 1
0 Comments

Velocity Magazines Editor, John Morris’ Opinion Piece:

Charles Leclerc continued with his near-perfect start to 2022 with his victory at the 2022 Formula 1 Heineken Australian Grand Prix.

The win was his second from three races, with a runner-up position to Max Verstappen at Saudi Arabia his lowest finishing position.

In a season of significant technical change, Scuderia Ferrari has left the opposition at the starting line. From outright speed to tyre management, the Prancing Horse has proven to be quicker, less demanding on their rubber and more reliable than any other team.

In many ways it bears the hallmarks of Brawn’s championship win in 2009.

That year had also commenced with a blank slate as a raft of new technical regulations induced a fairly significant change to the status quo.

Tyre and aerodynamic specification were most the most notable revisions that year.

Front wings became lower and wider, while the rear had became narrower and higher. The proliferation of bargeboards, winglets and turning vanes were also toned down or removed completely.

A Kinetic recovery system option (KERS), was offered, though not mandatory. Most teams elected against the inclusion of such technology, citing the additional weight that resulted as counter productive.

The changes were the results of an FIA sanctioned ‘Overtaking working group.’ The committee was given the brief of improving the spectacle of Formula 1 through increased overtaking. It also sought to cap the spiralling costs of F1.

Sound familiar?

The Mercedes powered Brawn BGP 001 was one of three teams that ran with a unique ‘double diffuser’. It proved to be a masterstroke and led to a season-long game of ‘catch-up’ for those who didn’t.

Jenson Button had a flag-to-flag victory in the Brawn at the season opener in Australia. It was the prelude to a further 5 wins in the opening 7 rounds, which saw the Brit take the mid-season break with a seemingly insurmountable lead. Button’s golden touch eluded him in the second stanza of the season as the other major players introduced their own interpretations of the diffuser.

Red Bull usurped Brawn’s advantage and Button’s lead crumbled under relentless pressure from Sebastian Vettel. The German fell short of the title by just 11 points as Button clung to an unassailable lead after the penultimate round.

Ferrari struggled that year, having gambled on a KERS system and were hampered by a heavier car. McLaren also showed renewed promise with their Mercedes power and snared two wins during the latter half of the year.

Fast forward to 2022…

Ferrari has seized the early advantage with wins in Bahrain and Australia, while Red Bull, Mercedes AMG Petronas, (which bought Brawn in 2010) and McLaren Mercedes haven’t been able to match Ferrari in either pace or reliability.

Red Bull, as they did in 2009, loomed at the most likely threat. Verstappen had pressured Leclerc throughout much of the season opener in Bahrain and won the second race in Saudi Arabia.

Team advisor Helmut Marko acknowledged that the Red Bull RB18 is some 10kg heavier than the Ferrari, which equates to around 4/10ths of a second per lap.

SEE ALL OF VELOCITY’S AGP PHOTOS HERE

Solving such a disparity is no quick fix visit to a weight loss centre, protein shake or a frenzied attack on the car with a chainsaw. Such reductions are a calculated, timely and expensive proposition further hampered by new budget caps for F1. It is a similar story at both Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 and McLaren Mercedes, though there problems are more technically related as opposed to weight.

’Porpoising,” has become the buzzword for the new generation F1 car. It describes the bouncing motion which results from sudden increases and decreases in downforce most commonly found in ground effect machines. It is a common issue throughout the grid, though Ferrari have found a balance which limits the problem at the crucial turn in point, while others haven’t. It means that the Ferrari is more predictable and stable when other drivers lift off the accelerator momentarily to settle the car.

Like the ‘double diffuser’ of 2009, the underside of the ‘ground effects’ enhanced 2022 Ferrari F1-75 contains some hidden gems which provide a distinct advantage for their drivers. The car seems better balanced and manages tyre wear more effectively than its rivals.

The 2022 Formula One Heineken Australian Grand Prix provided further proof that Ferrari held a quantum advantage at the early stage of the season. Charles Leclerc sat at, or near the top of the leaderboard throughout the weekend and claimed pole position with the only sub 1:18 minute lap.

Leclerc the owned the race, leading from start to finish and posted the fastest lap of the race in a manner that had not been done by a Ferrari since 2010.

That Ferrari juggernaut was no disappointment to the 400,000 plus fans that attended during the four days of racing at Albert Park. Perhaps, after a near decade long prominence of Mercedes AMG Petronas Team and Red Bull Racing, the return to the top for Scuderia Ferrari provided a welcome change for the Melbourne crowd, which is home to a significant Italian community.

As Leclerc left the rest in his wake from the run to the opening corner, the battle for the minor placings provided a genuine highlights reel of racing. Max Verstappen held 2nd ahead of the Mercedes AMG Petronas duo of Hamilton and Russell. Perez rounded out the top 5, just ahead McLaren’s Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo. Alpine, Alfa Romeo, Williams and Haas all fought for the final points scoring positions in the Top 10.

While it was plain sailing for Lerclec, the Grand Prix ended all to quickly for Ferrari teammate Carlos Sainz. A stoppage in Qualifying relegated the Spaniard to 9th on the grid. A gamble on harder compound tyres at the start wasn’t helped by a last minute change of steering wheel which unsettled Sainz and he spun out of the race on Lap 2, having lost 5 places during the opening lap.

The race resumed on lap 6 with Leclerc able to pull away from Verstappen at around 4/10ths of a second per lap. Sergio Perez finally displaced Hamilton from 3rd place on lap 11 as Sebastian Vettel ran wide at Turn 11 but managed to escape the gravel in his Aston Martin. It was to be only a temporary reprieve for the German.

Pitstops commenced on lap 19 with Verstappen amongst the first to change to the harder tyre having complained of graining on his front tyres. Norris stopped on lap 21 and Ricciardo a lap later. The Australian returned to the track in a treacherous situation and was hounded by Alex Albon and Lance Stroll through Turns 2 and 3 before finally edging away from the pair.

Leclerc and Hamilton made their stops on Lap 23 moments before Vettel collided with the wall at Turn 5 and stopping on the circuit. The ensuant Safety Car allowed Russell to stop and leapfrog teammate Hamilton for 4th place.

That also allowed Verstappen to close on Leclerc and then challenge or the lead at the restart on Lap 27. A small error at the exit of the final corner prior to the green flag allowed Verstappen to move alongside for a brief moment as he had done in Saudi Arabia, though this time Leclerc was able to maintain his lead.

From there the Ferrari was never headed. Verstappen looked set for a comfortable second place finish until a mechanical issue forced him to shut down the Red Bull at the exit of Turn 2 with a small fire erupting under the engine cowling.

“I smell some weird fluid,” Verstappen told his engineer as he headed towards the nearest fire marshal’s post. Red Bull’s Helmut Marko latter confirmed the issue to be a fluid leak and not a repeat of the fuel pump issue from Bahrain.

Sergio Perez inherited 2nd place and George Russell 3rd just ahead of team leader Hamilton, who was advised by the team to manage an overheating concern during the closing laps of the race. Alonso, Magnussen and Albon all occupied places in the top 10 after electing not to stop during the Safety Car period. The Williams remained on track until the final lap and managed to finish in 10th place.

“Are you still awake?” Sergio Perez joked with his engineer as the final lap approached.

“Still going, jet lap kicking in,” his engineer replied.

Leclerc won from Perez and Russell. Hamilton, Norris, Ricciardo, Ocon, Bottas, Gasly and Albon.

“What a great victory this was for us!” Leclerc told Ferrari Media. “We managed our pace well and were extremely competitive. We didn’t suffer from tyre degradation, even when pushing hard. The car was just amazing and I’m very pleased with how my race went.On paper, this was a track that we expected to be tough for us, so we have to review our data because we were in fact very strong.It’s a great way to start the season, but we have to keep in mind that we are only three races into a very long championship. We can’t afford to relax at any moment and have to stay on top of things, most of all on development.”

Leclerc’s comments were profound, especially given the events of 2009. Though there are some major differences between these two Grand Prix seasons, none the least being 2009 was a 17 race championship and 2022 covers 22 rounds. For now Ferrari holds a significant advantage. How quickly the opposition confronts and solves those issues that has hampered their race cars will go a long way in deciding the winner of the 2022 Formula One World Championship.

There is a distinct possibility that Leclerc will hold an irrevocable lead by the time the opposition has unlocked the full potential of their respective 2022 armouries.

MORE MOTORSPORT NEWS…

SUBSCRIBE TO VELOCITY MAGAZINE

For all our news keep your eyes peeled on the Velocity Magazine website and social media, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for our daily updates and to get the latest edition of our glossy magazine subscribe here from just $55 for 12 months subscription.

GET OUR LATEST ISSUE NUMBER 41 HERE