The big theme that emerged from the three days of testing in Barcelona was porpoising. A particular situation of ‘hopping’ in the middle of the straight in which almost all the single-seaters found themselves involved and which obviously caused not only professionals and engineers to debate, but naturally also the drivers themselves. Many of them underlined the discomfort and annoyance that can be generated by being ‘bouncing’ in the passenger compartment on a straight line at over 300 km / h. However, someone went even further, highlighting possible security risks. Bringing this to the table was Mercedes’ new standard bearer, George Russell.
The young English talent has a particularly important role in the paddock, given that he is at the head of the GPDA, the F1 drivers union which has – among its main interests – also to face any risks for the safety of the drivers themselves. In disagreement with the King’s Lynn native, however, his predecessor in the role of Lewis Hamilton’s boxing mate was said. Valtteri Bottas, who switched from Mercedes to Alfa Romeo in winter, has in fact diminished the safety risks brought by the now infamous porpoising. Commenting on the outcome of the tests on the sidelines of the presentation of the new car in Hinwil, Bottas explained his point of view on the problem.
“For now I don’t think there is a safety problem – commented the driver from Nastola, as reported by the RaceFans website – I think it’s just the way the car’s aerodynamics work. Obviously it is a fact that the further you go down with the car, the more downforce you have. And if you find a way to get a good lap with the car, being able to keep it low, you could gain something in terms of performance. But obviously in some points this entails a cost in terms of driveability, especially at high speeds and on bumps. This is a rather interesting new philosophy on the aerodynamic side of the car. I don’t think it will be a major concern. As a team we have to work on it and we have to make sure the car is reliable enough for these regulations. The same goes for every team ”.
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