And is the Red Bull RB18 so slow today?
The Brazilian GP sprint race was extremely entertaining. Lots of action, lots of changes and a leader who falls from his throne. At least, so it seemed. The superior Verstappen was not as dominant yesterday as the other races this season.
Now that is in itself not a big deal: sport benefits from the status quo constantly changing. After all, it makes for more fun races. But it is remarkable that Verstappen was suddenly so much slower than usual.
Why was Red Bull so slow?
The medium band has been blamed by some as the culprit. The only one who also ran on medium was Nicholas Latifi, not really the best benchmark (yes, he ended up stiff in the back of course). Verstappen also suffered a bit of damage with the minor collision with Sainz, but then the Dutchman, who was born in Belgium and who lives in Monaco, had not been fast enough for laps.
What is going on? Why was Red Bull so slow? According to Mark Hughes of the very interesting The Race it depends on the track temperature. During the second free practice on Saturday, Red Bull still participated well. The track temperature was then about 50 degrees Celsius. However, during the sprint race the temperature had dropped from 50 to 27 degrees.
The Red Bull seems to do better in warm conditions. The grip on the front is especially sensitive to it. In Mexico it was clear to see that the rising temperature resulted in an RB18 that continued to function better.
Will it still be okay this race?
So how will it go today? For that, let’s take a look at the weather forecast. It will be 30 degrees this afternoon, this will of course ensure high track temperatures. So a Red Bull RB18 that is ‘more at ease’. Incidentally, we must of course take our hats off for the steps that Mercedes has apparently taken. If they continue this trend, 2023 could turn out to be a very special year!
Then there is also a tactical advantage. Verstappen still has two fresh soft tires. Brazil is a track that is quite demanding on the tyres, so count on a two-stop strategy.
Verstappen is the only one who can do the medium-soft-soft (or a variant thereof), while the other drivers only have one fresh set. Russell and Hamilton both have a young used set of red in addition to their fresh red belt. If we look at the bookmakers, Verstappen is still the favorite, only the distance with Hamilton is a bit smaller than before.
Read more? Check here the starting grid of the GP Brazil 2022 and here the times and everything you need to know about the GP of Brazil 2022!
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