With the return of ground-effect cars, some teams have suffered from porpoising more than others. The problem reached a new peak during the weekend of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, when the drivers had to deal with the hopping of the cars especially on the very long main straight.
Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and George Russell have expressed all their concerns about safety, while Pierre Gasly has called for a quick intervention by the FIA to prevent the drivers from being forced “to use the cane at 30”.
Among the teams that have suffered very little, or not at all, from porpoising is Red Bull. The Milton Keynes team scored a double yesterday with Max Verstappen who preceded Sergio Perez, and this result allowed the Dutchman to take off in the drivers ‘standings and the team to escape in the Constructors’ standings.
Christian Horner spoke on the porpoising affair and on the riders’ requests underlining how the teams could easily solve the problem by increasing the ground clearance.
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB18
Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool
“You can choose at what height to run the car, right? A car that is not safe should never go on the track, but I think this is an aspect that concerns the technicians more because there are cars that suffer more from this phenomenon and others less ”.
“Honestly, it would seem unfair to penalize those who have worked well compared to those who, perhaps, have narrowly missed the target”.
Horner then continued his analysis by stating that an eventual intervention by the FIA should only take place if the problem concerns the entire grid.
“If the phenomenon affects only a few people or a few teams, then it’s something that single team should be dealing with.”
A background that emerged during the Baku weekend concerns the refusal of the teams, last year, to accept the proposal to increase the minimum ground clearance of the new cars. The numerous appeals from the drivers, worried about their safety, have brought the issue back into the spotlight ahead of the Canadian GP that will take place this weekend.
When asked how Horner would have behaved if the Red Bull drivers had suffered from porpising problems, the team principal of the Milton Keynes team replied: “I would have told them to complain as much as possible over the radio. Its part of the game”.
“There are some remedies to porpoising, but these come at the expense of performance. The simplest thing to do is to complain. Each team can choose ”.
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