The first session in Barcelona ended with the best time of Lando Norris in the McLaren, who preceded Max Verstappen in the Red Bull by just 24 thousandths. Although the FP1 times are not very indicative for understanding the values on the field, especially considering that many teams worked on technical and aerodynamic tests to evaluate the updates, on the other hand, the opening session gave some indications on which path to work towards the rest of the weekend.
However, FP1 also revealed other details, such as the list of Power Unit elements replaced on the various single-seaters at the beginning of the weekend and there was no shortage of surprises. The fourth Power Unit was mounted on Max Verstappen’s car, the last one before he ended up with a penalty.
In reality, the third unit had only been assembled two weeks ago in Canada, but a problem in FP1, with the breakage of one of the elements that make up the hybrid part, forced the mechanics to go back to one of the two old units used previously.
Red Bull Racing RB20, technical detail
Picture of: Giorgio Piola
On the occasion of the first free practice session in Spain, Red Bull once again changed the Power Unit on the Dutchman’s car, replacing multiple components: engine, turbo, MGU-H, MGU-K and exhaust system. For the first four elements this is the fourth unit, the last one allowed by the regulation before a penalty is triggered. On the contrary, however, for the rest it is the fifth exhaust system of the eight permitted during the championship, which is why it still has a margin before a possible sanction.
As much as the Milton Keynes team tried to minimize the problems in terms of reliability after the changes to the project in the winter, it is clear that, beyond the possible rotations, being already on the fourth unit in June is something that leaves many doubts. Added to this is the fact that the gearbox has been replaced on both RB20s: if for the “container” structure the three-time world champion has reached three units, on the contrary for the actual transmission it is the fourth unit, which means he can only fit one more new one before having to back up the grid.
However, Verstappen is not the only one with a new Power Unit. Several components have also been replaced on Carlos Sainz’s single-seater, such as the engine, turbo, MGU-H, MGU-K and exhaust system. However, if the Dutchman has already reached the fourth unit, in the case of the Spaniard from Ferrari he stops at the third. Charles Leclerc had already had to mount it a few weeks ago as a precaution after the problems encountered in the Imola-Monaco-Canada triptych, while now it was the turn of his teammate.
Ferrari SF-24 technical detail
Picture of: Giorgio Piola
Speaking precisely of the Monegasque, a component, the MGU-H, was also replaced on his car, fitting the fourth unit, the last before a sanction is triggered which would force him to move down 10 positions on the starting grid.
It should be noted that also on Pierre Gasly’s Alpine the engine, turbo, MGU-H and MGU-K were changed, while on Esteban Ocon’s other A524 the battery pack was replaced, fitting the second of the two available for the entire world. Other news concerns the new battery pack on Sergio Perez’s Red Bull, as well as the replacement of the battery pack and the control unit on Guanyu Zhou’s Sauber.
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