The particular Jeddah track was the protagonist of a first day of free practice full of interesting ideas. After a first session that was still interlocutory, in the second everyone started to push harder and we were able to witness the usual qualifying and race pace simulations, whose data we analyze as usual, starting from the analysis of the flying lap.
Alonso best time but possible meteor, Mercedes unloaded and aggressive
We took the liberty of not including Fernando's beautiful lap Alonso in the analysis of the performance of the flying lap. The reason is simple: already in Bahrain the Asturian had stated that their programs had tended to be different from those of their opponents, with the simulations generally faced with a higher engine mode and a lower fuel load. The script also seemed to repeat itself in free practice in Jeddah, with a simulation of race pace which then saw Aston Martin reposition itself behind the top four teams, which is why the feeling is that on the flying lap in free practice the performance of the “verdona ” of Silverstone is actually a meteor that can be temporarily considered out of the games that count for the front row. Given this, we then compared the laps of Russell, Versappen and Leclerc, classified in that order, to get an initial idea of what was happening on the track. The first thing that catches your eye is that Mercedes seems to have approached the Saudi weekend with a decidedly low downforce set-up. The indications are clear compared to the competition: the W15 leaves 1 and a half tenths to Verstappen in the first sector, and then begins to gain, and, especially in the second half of the lap, in the high-speed sections, obtains the best feedback and takes the lead . The impression is that the Brackley team's car actually still needs a lot of work on the set-up to be truly set up and with a fairly wide operating window, but that it manages to defend itself very well on the flying lap. On the other hand, Ferrari and Red Bull have apparently chosen a more aerodynamically loaded set-up, with Red Bull appearing to be in a reasonable middle ground, while the Maranello team has surprised the whole paddock a bit because after having certified a new specification of medium-low downforce rear wing, he never mounted it on the single-seater, remaining with the medium-high specification seen in Bahrain. Looking at the data we can easily see that cornering speeds in the second half of the lap are excellent for Leclerc and Russellat the antipodes of the structure, while they are still low for Verstappenwhich shines in high-speed changes of direction, but loses something in medium-speed Ss, partially confirming that although the RB20 continues to be the absolute reference, the advantage is not as across the board as last season, where it dominated in every straight and at the same time in every curve.
Race pace simulations: Ferrari and Red Bull good
In the second half of the session the teams then carried out race simulations and also in this case several interesting things were noticed. First of all Ferrari with Leclerc was the only team to try the simulation on soft tyresgoing on to carry out a truly excellent stint, which started with a fairly high time but then always progressed, until it dropped below the 1:34 mark in the last simulation lap. Verstappen instead he started with a medium tire and a more competitive time and then set two very fast times, but needed a cooling lap to bring the tires back into the window. However, the Dutchman was the fastest on average and certainly did not appear weak, but the comparison with Leclerc's final laps appears interesting. Also Perez, a lover of this track, still showed good pace and was the protagonist of the longest simulation with 14 laps under his belt. A Sainz weak and feverish, he carried out a simulation on medium tyres, all things considered, not far from Leclerc, while the two Mercedes and Norris carried out too few laps to evaluate any behavior of their tyres. However, both teams gave the impression of having to work a lot on the set-up, unlike Ferrari and Red Bull who obviously have to work in turn but seem to be starting from a more solid and centered base at the moment. Big tire deterioration then for Fernando Alonso, who saw his times increase by around 1 second while all the other drivers were lowering the lap limit thanks to the lightening of the car due to fuel consumption.
Finally, we developed the graph of the average telemetry of these simulations and the impression is that it is particularly truthful. In fact, we notice how the Ferraris suffer the greatest load on the straights (the DRS does not open in the race simulation so the greater resistance has more weight) even though they derive a significant improvement in the driven sections, especially in the first high-speed sector. Russell and Hamilton stand out in sprint speeds, confirming a W15 that is truly aerodynamically unloaded, while Verstappen shows what is probably the best compromise overall in terms of pace. Precisely from this simulation comes a ranking in the race that seemed realistic to us with Verstappen as a reference, Leclerc in second place at 3 tenths, then Sainz, the two Mercedes and the McLaren at 4 and a half tenths and Alonso at around 1 second away, with Perez probably on Leclerc's times over a stint of equal length.
The big unknown for Ferrari
“We wanted to give confidence to our drivers, but I am convinced that between now and qualifying all the settings and therefore the load levels will converge”, said Frederick Vasseur to the microphones of SkySports F1 answering the question of whether the loaded rear wing will be a retained option or not. In fact, the red team principal would seem to suggest a switch to a lower load specification once the track is decidedly more rubberized and cleaner from tomorrow, but, if this were the case, it would mean that Leclerc and Sainz will have to adapt practically only in third morning practice session, to a car with a much lower load level. Beyond the curiosity of seeing the new wing specification on the SF-24, the choice is very interesting because overall, with this level of load, the Italian single-seater still performed well and if one were to choose to make such a change radical would also mean placing great trust in correlation and simulations. However, degradation on the Saudi track should not be a problem so it will be essential to decide based on the pure performance of the car, being able to worry relatively less about the deterioration in tire performance. We will go to the third free practice sessions, therefore with great curiosity to see if Ferrari will have really unloaded, if Mercedes will instead confirm itself at low load and if Red Bull will be able to show a record-breaking pure performance (and not just tire degradation).
#Arabia #FP2 #analysis #Max #favorite #Ferrari #deciphered
