F1 | Perez's alarm: “In dirty air we have returned to 2021”

2024 features the third generation of Formula 1 single-seaters born under the technical regulations that came into force at the beginning of 2022, the ground effect ones, and all teams have been able to make very important steps forward in terms of performance .

This means having refined not only the mechanics, but also – if not above all – the aerodynamics. Everyone has been looking for aerodynamic load and this study, which has always been spasmodic, leads to positive effects regarding lap times, but can also have harmful ones in certain racing situations.

For example when one car follows another during the race. Some drivers, at the end of the Bahrain Grand Prix, had pointed out the worsening of the situation in dirty air, i.e. when one car follows another to try to overtake.

On the eve of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, the second round of the 2024 World Championship, Sergio Perez in turn supported this thesis, stating that the levels of difficulty that the drivers experienced in the dirty air in Sakhir seem to have come dangerously close to those experienced in 2021, the last year of the era before the return of ground effect in the world championship Circus.

“Yes, I think the situation gets worse when you follow the other cars,” said the Red Bull Racing team driver. “In Bahrain, if you don't qualify on the front row, the situation is certainly complex.”

“It will be interesting to see what situation we find in Jeddah. I think the situation, when you follow a car and have dirty air, is similar to what we experienced in 2021. We are getting closer to those parameters.”

While waiting to see how it goes in Saudi Arabia, the Mexican also took stock of his integration on the RB20. This car, like the RB19, also seems far from his preferences, but his team is well advanced in understanding it. Proof of this is Sakhir's second place, but things will have to improve.

“At the moment I would say the car is not very comfortable for me, it's not very close to my preferences, but I understand it much better than I understood the RB19.”

“I think overall, as a team, we're understanding better how to maximize performance and get the best out of the car. And I think this is a good starting point for us.”