Topic: Formula 1 2022: The return of ground effect(s)

[Funky_Gibbons]

Yeah exactly. Don't think the rods were there at the second test, they were something they added during the season proper to help with the floor?

Got to wonder how much weight they've added

In theory they shouldn't have added any weight. If you think of a can of baked beans for example;



Those ribs have been added to increase stiffness, without them it would be very easy to squash the can radially. To give the same stiffness without the ribs you'd probably need to double or triple the thickness of the material.

Hopefully Mercedes have analysed where their floor is flexing/resonating and been able to add ribs to those areas. 

[west_london_red]

Yeah exactly. Don't think the rods were there at the second test, they were something they added during the season proper to help with the floor?

Got to wonder how much weight they've added

I don’t think the weight would play a huge part, F1 cars are usually under the weight limit and weight has to be added to get them above the minimum weight. The added weight is usually added as low as possible to keep the centre of gravity low so if it on or close to the floor I wouldn’t have thought it’s a huge issue.

[CornerFlag]

Poland doesn't even have a B-grade circuit let alone the Baltics. The Kielce circuit would need a lot of work to upgrade to F1 levels. It's a peculiar and quite fun track in the woods but the safety is a bit inadequate.

They were building a Finnish track that's not that far from the Russian border IIRC, I'm sure they were going for Grade 1 too.

[Funky_Gibbons]

I don’t think the weight would play a huge part, F1 cars are usually under the weight limit and weight has to be added to get them above the minimum weight. The added weight is usually added as low as possible to keep the centre of gravity low so if it on or close to the floor I wouldn’t have thought it’s a huge issue.

A lot of teams are struggling to hit the minimum weight limit this season with some having to remove paint from the livery.

It's quite a big issue.

https://www.sportskeeda.com/f1/news-f1-teams-resort-scraping-paint-overweight-cars

[Linudden]

They were building a Finnish track that's not that far from the Russian border IIRC, I'm sure they were going for Grade 1 too.

The Kymi Ring will host the MotoGP from this year onwards. It's not that close to the Russian border, it's in the Helsinki-Lahti forested areas in the interior. However, they've said they're not pursuing F1 because of the hosting fees. If Mika or Kimi had been in their primes it might have been a different story though. The overnight twilight in summer would make a 7 pm start and a US-friendly race time very easy.

[Trump's tiny tiny hands]

[Trump's tiny tiny hands]

Will be interesting to see who’s upgrades work best later on, McLaren think they’ve found half a second a lap.

[TepidT2O]

Will be interesting to see who’s upgrades work best later on, McLaren think they’ve found half a second a lap.

Well that’s huge if true

[Trump's tiny tiny hands]

Well that’s huge if true

Yeah but even if true others wont have stood still either.

McLaren believe they have the permanent solution to their brake problems, among other upgrades.

[TepidT2O]

Yeah but even if true others wont have stood still either.

McLaren believe they have the permanent solution to their brake problems, among other upgrades.

Teams like McLaren and Mercedes have huge gains they can make though, the teams at the front will have made smaller gains you’d imagine

[Trump's tiny tiny hands]

Teams like McLaren and Mercedes have huge gains they can make though, the teams at the front will have made smaller gains you’d imagine

Mercedes I can believe but McLaren? Best thing about coming back to the track McLaren initially tested well on is we all get to see I suppose

[naYoRHa2b]

Ferrari reckon they've found a few tenths on RB, In season development, they'll all find time. Though McLaren need about a second and half if they wanna be at the front.

See how these upgrades do in 5 minutes!

https://mobile.twitter.com/AlbertFab...GClMYiwGQ&s=19

[Funky_Gibbons]

Formula 1: Red Bull ask for FIA inquiry into Aston Martin design amid 'copying' claims


https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/formula1/61525597

But it seems like the FIA are happy;

[Romford_Red]

Red Bull complaining?

What next?

[bradders1011]

What are the rules around reverse engineering? Surely the answer to the charge is just "we looked at what a fast car was doing and had a go ourselves."

Ferraris looking good in FP1.

[Funky_Gibbons]

What are the rules around reverse engineering? Surely the answer to the charge is just "we looked at what a fast car was doing and had a go ourselves."

Ferraris looking good in FP1.

Racing Point were fined and docked points last year for copying parts of the Mercedes so it's certainly frowned upon.

It seems though that Aston Martin have been able to show they've been working on this concept for sometime though and not just reversed engineered the Red Bull design.....

But I don't think this is what Red Bull are implying, they've lost some engineers to Aston Martin recently and are wondering whether design information (their IP) has been leaked.   

[Funky_Gibbons]

Mercedes 2 & 3 after qualifying sims.

Car looks really low to the ground but is a lot more stable with no porpoising. Let’s hope they don’t change the set-up again..

[Stockholm Syndrome]

Racing Point were fined and docked points last year for copying parts of the Mercedes so it's certainly frowned upon.

It seems though that Aston Martin have been able to show they've been working on this concept for sometime though and not just reversed engineered the Red Bull design.....

But I don't think this is what Red Bull are implying, they've lost some engineers to Aston Martin recently and are wondering whether design information (their IP) has been leaked.

Aren't Racing Point and Aston Martin the same as well, just with a name change. Perhaps signs of a pattern of behavior

[Funky_Gibbons]

Aren't Racing Point and Aston Martin the same as well, just with a name change. Perhaps signs of a pattern of behavior

Yes they are

[TepidT2O]

Mercedes 2 & 3 after qualifying sims.

Car looks really low to the ground but is a lot more stable with no porpoising. Let’s hope they don’t change the set-up again..

It just looks closer to the road than it has done too….(maybe my eyes deceiving me of course)

[El Lobo]

It'd just be nice to have three teams fighting for wins

[Funky_Gibbons]

It just looks closer to the road than it has done too….(maybe my eyes deceiving me of course)

It definitely is.

Sky just put a stat up saying the Mercedes are ranked 1 & 2 for straight line speed. Both cars have new power units but that’s still some improvement.

[Paul_h]

Russell looks quick around here...outside bet for the race win?
Mercs look to have solved their issues with the updated bodywork

[Linudden]

Having a power unit deficit doesn't matter that much in Barcelona so it's not a surprise to me that Mercedes are quite competitive. When it's Baku and Montréal that's a much bigger hill to climb. The first five races were all very engine-dependent. That being said, Ferrari will have a stronger PU tomorrow and Red Bull were sandbagging like crazy so merely beating Pérez to P4 would be a major win for Mercedes tomorrow.

I'm thinking a three-stop race could be the way to go here. All dependent on how competitive the hards are.

[TepidT2O]

Ferrari didn’t improve much between FP1 and FP2 (and neither did Max), so I suspect that they haven’t really turned it up yet.

Still expect the same front 4 in qualifying

[Funky_Gibbons]

Russell looks quick around here...outside bet for the race win?
Mercs look to have solved their issues with the updated bodywork

They just showed his fastest lap and it looks like he lost a little time when negotiating slower cars. Car looked absolutely nailed to the floor though.

[Funky_Gibbons]

Ferrari didn’t improve much between FP1 and FP2 (and neither did Max), so I suspect that they haven’t really turned it up yet.

Still expect the same front 4 in qualifying

Looked like Ferrari were struggling with tyres though, Leclerc had a few moments later into his run.

[Trump's tiny tiny hands]

McLaren have gone backwards with their "upgrades" 

[Linudden]

Looked like Ferrari were struggling with tyres though, Leclerc had a few moments later into his run.

Apparently Leclerc ran quite old mediums (nine laps) to begin with, which is tough on heavy fuel a few laps in. S2 is where you mainly make laptime during the race and that's Ferrari's strong sector so it's not that concerning at the moment. I expect the second stint to be what decides the race, rather than the first. If Leclerc takes pole and leads Verstappen before getting undercut, he can then use the fresher tyres to stay close enough to undercut Verstappen in a switchback on the fresh hards. In the mid-range fuel load, any tyre differences start to even out.

He had 0.3 s on Verstappen in both sessions, I'd expect that to be a lot closer in qualifying trim but also because Ferrari will be more focused on setting the car up for having the race pace now.

[Funky_Gibbons]

0.5s between the top 6.

[TepidT2O]

Interesting… really interesting…

Long may it continue

[Trump's tiny tiny hands]

[Linudden]

Apparently Leclerc was really fast on a soft long run at the end of the session. Verstappen could've definitely done the same. My guess is that Mercedes are going all-out in qualifying trim on this particular circuit. You can take turn 3 easy flat even on lower wing levels when running on low fuel and fresh tyres. They could push Sainz and Pérez down the grid but risk being eaten alive tomorrow once the tyres overheat in the S2 and S3.

Can either Russell or Hamilton get within 30 seconds of the win in a green-flag race on this particular track though? I'd guess so.

[Linudden]

Green Bull copywriter malfunction

[voodoo ray]

count me in with the many, many others who'd like to see a carlito win this weekend.

[sminp]

That looks a very good time from Russell in Q2

[Funky_Gibbons]

I think the others were on scrubbed tyres, but that’s still a good time from Russell.

[Funky_Gibbons]

Magnussen is looking pacey too.

[voodoo ray]

schumacher's gone from being on fire to being on fire.

[naYoRHa2b]

Charles the only one to save a set of softs.