F1 | Sauber: news in Canada to reopen the fight in the middle of the group

On the weekend of the Monaco Grand Prix, Williams was able to take a good ninth place with Alex Albon, who thus gave the Grove team two precious points in terms of the world rankings. However, the top ten obtained by the Anglo-Thai driver also had another effect, namely that of leaving Sauber as the only team still with zero points.

Although in the first races on several occasions it seemed to have the opportunity to get close to the top ten, the numerous problems during the pit stops often deprived the Swiss team of the possibility of competing for a finish in the points, effectively nullifying the potential of the car.

In the meantime, the rivals have grown, in particular Racing Bulls, which with the updates brought to Japan and Miami has made a clear leap forward, getting significantly closer to Aston Martin, breaking the barrier that divided the five high-end teams from those from the center of the group onwards.

The latest outings for Sauber have been rather disappointing, given that the car has fallen into a difficult phase, suffering on the one hand from the growth of its opponents, while on the other from the fact that the single-seater has not adapted particularly well to certain tracks. For example, in recent events the C45 has often been eliminated in Q1 with both drivers, as in Monaco, where it was relegated to the last rows before the disqualification of the two Haas due to an irregularity with the DRS.

Starting from behind clearly significantly complicates the chances of aiming for the points zone, although this is an aspect that Sauber was already suffering from at the beginning of the season, giving its best in the race. But with the adversaries continuing to grow, we need to push for developments to get closer.

For the stage in Canada, the Swiss team should bring some updates, also useful for adapting to the needs of the track, different from those faced in the last race weekends. “These are new developments that have been planned for some time. It will be another step, but every step counts, so we hope to be able to close the gap with Williams, perhaps scoring some points”, explained Sauber’s Xavi Pujolar, announcing that the Hinwil team will present itself in Canada with other innovations.

The hope is to get closer to the closest rivals. Williams is continuing to push behind the scenes to reduce the weight factor, given that the FW46 is beyond the minimum threshold allowed by the regulations: on a track like Monaco, where mass plays a less marked role, Albon showed some of the potential of the car, collecting two points. Alpine is also continuing its development work to get back on its feet after a very difficult start to the season and, like Williams, it was able to bring a car into the top ten in Monaco.

Esteban Ocon, Alpine A524 and Valtteri Bottas, Kick Sauber F1 Team C44

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images

Even if Racing Bulls moves away, Haas, Williams and Alpine are still within a few points, a theme that gives Sauber confidence, because with a couple of good performances the ranking could change quickly. “I think, in terms of performance, none of our rivals are far enough away to not be reachable in terms of points. At the moment, we still think it’s possible, but I’m sure it will be a challenge every time. But in terms of performance, we are all very close and maybe at some point the situation will reverse itself, and this is what we are trying to achieve.”

Although Canada also has many slow corners and medium-speed chicanes, it is a different challenge from that of Monaco, because in Montreal there are also long straights which push the teams towards different choices in terms of set-up, aiming for something more exhaust. The asphalt has also changed, because this year it has been completely revised: this could represent a crucial element during the weekend, because it could have eliminated some of the bumps in the braking points. Last year, both in Singapore and Monza, Sauber struggled because he had set the car too low, only to then realize that the bottom was hitting the bumps, thus having to raise the car.

“In terms of corner speed, Montreal is a very slow track. There is no high-speed corner, but there is a very long straight. The cornering speed is quite similar. But the travel time, as well as the roughness of the asphalt, are different from Monaco, we hope it can be an opportunity for us. On the curbs, from the feedback we received from the riders and from what we saw from the data, everything seems ok. But I would also say that the curbs in Montreal are a little different. We’ll have to see. It’s not the same type of curbs there, it’s more aggressive,” Pujolar added.