250,000 euros per kilo

Gaining kilos is very easy. But losing them … costs a lot. Things in life that can be fully applied to Formula 1. Hundreds of thoughtful minds from the best ‘Great Circus’ factories already know this, having spent several months looking for a solution to remove the grams in their vehicles, one of the main problems the groups encountered this year and that is exacerbated when the whole context is understood.

Ang Formula 1 This year they have to go from gaining a weight of 752 kg, to a total of 795 due to major changes in regulations. Approximately 43 kilograms from one year to another after the introduction of a greater number of standardized components and the increase in the safety of single-seater. The surprise came to see that most cars came out fatter, exceeding the minimum weight, something for which an agreement was reached to finally pay attention to them. 798 (46 more than in 2021).

10 kilos, about three -tenths

On the track, drivers, more than just this year’s new aerodynamic concept cars, complained from day one about the worst sensation the car gave them under braking because of how much it cost them to stop. it’s straight because of its excess weight. But more than that, the key is in the clock. Only the Alfa Romeo is capable of carrying 798 kilograms of minimum weight and that was remarkable from the beginning in its beautiful results. This is a very serious issue and one that, for example, Red Bull has said it needs to resolve quickly to fight Ferrari for the title.

Helmut Marko, Red Bull’s adviser, spoke openly about it after the Australian GP. “We are clearly heavier than Ferrari. I think we have a disadvantage of about ten kilograms, which converted to lap time is equal to about three tenths ”. The Austrian is not wrong about, for example, a track like the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, although the tenths on each lap will vary depending on each track. But the kit in question is not the problem. He knew it very well. The solution is very expensive.

“But weight loss is expensive, it’s a matter of finance and reliability. So it’s about striking the balance, which is hard to cap the budget, we’re facing tough times.” According to ‘Motorsport.com’, reducing a kilogram of weight from a car can cost approximately 250,000 euros. A few years ago, for large teams, it was just a moment, to be the fastest to achieve this. But now, money is the key for everyone.

Since last year, in F1 a budget ceiling has been introduced that this course is 140 million dollars. Because of this, teams need to think hard before presenting evolution. Teams encounter problems such as rebounding their vehicles straight due to loss of ground effect, which they must also solve, and at the same time they must think about evolutions that improve over time. lap their single-seater for reasons not just weight loss. Failure in one of these evolutions is a huge setback for each team’s planning and accounts, so everyone walks carefully, working behind the scenes to reach those goals.

Weight is something that affects everyone. For example, Pat Fry, Alpine’s technical director, pointed out that his team needs to improve “racing pace”, but also that it is “working to bring the weight -saving elements to the car”. Among them, the new floor they tested in Imola in Alonso’s car, was lighter, and therefore, that meant a tenth of an improvement for the Asturian (and also for Ocon when he brought it to Miami with Oviedo) .

removes paint

It is expected that Barcelona will soon see many new things in many cars, but so far, in the first races of the year many teams have decided to choose a more striking idea: to remove the paint on their car. It may seem silly, but any help is small. Red Bull was seen doing this recently, scratching paint on parts of an RB18 seen without paint under test sidepods.

“We didn’t paint the sidepods and rear wing parts to save 350 grams,” said Aston Martin technical director Andy Green. Later, McLaren also chose a similar solution at the beginning of the course. And Williams changed its livery at the last Australian GP for the same reason, leaving part of the car unpainted.

This solution is not new. In 1934, Mercedes, who had painted the car white, decided to scratch the paint on his Mercedes W25., left his silver racing car. All this, because his car exceeds the maximum weight of 750 kg by 1 kilogram. There the silver arrows were born because aluminum is in everyone’s sight. History.