Team ranking and tests analysis: In what position are Alonso and Sainz?

He Formula 1 World Cup 2023 starts next weekend at Bahrainthe same track where only three days of rehearsal before the course were conducted, some preseason tests of F1 2023 where everyone kept their cards. It is difficult to draw exact conclusions, because in the first race of the year everything can change, but the tests left some first impressions that allowed us to draw the first outline of what the beginning of the course could be.

williams

It’s an improvement over last year, but they’re still the favorites to start at the red lantern. The team ended the year with the resignation of its boss, Jost Capito, and its technical director, François-Xavier Demaison. With no replacement, only a temporary replacement, Williams was not expected to pull off the surprise and he didn’t.

9

McLaren, the disappointment

His goal is to fight to lead the middle zone and go to fourth place in the championship. But they are far from what is happening. From the presentation it is surprising that his car does not have great aerodynamic innovations, more conservative in its design. And on the track, they failed the tests. They had some issues that limited their testing, such as brake cooling. It was the team that rolled the least (311 turns, the most, AlphaTauri with 456) and they did not show a good rhythm. And besides, the statements of the team members were not encouraging. There were disappointing faces within the group, hoping to improve with a major new package scheduled for the fourth race of the year. But before that, the current car leaves a lot to be desired. He lacks speed. According to Will Buxton, Lando Norris finished the tests in anger and hit the box wall out of anger and frustration.

8

AlphaTauri, to fight in the central zone

AlphaTauri seemed to start less assuredly than the other teams in the middle zone, especially due to its performance in slow corners. And in turn, his economic situation does not help, as it is speculated that the new management of Red Bull may consider selling the team due to its poor numbers. It was the team that gave the most laps in all tests (456).

7

Haas, solid

The Haas team did some solid testing, but their car seems to be starting behind Alfa Romeo and it doesn’t look like they will start as strongly as last year. It seems the parity between Haas, AlphaTauri and McLaren should be huge. “It won’t be as easy as last year. We can’t tell if we’re at the beginning or the end of the middle zone,” said American team boss Günther Steiner. They were consistent throughout their long runs, although there was room for improvement and their drivers did not complain about the car’s behavior.

6

Alfa Romeo, step forward

With a car with a more aggressive design this season, Alfa Romeo showed a very good face from the start in the pre-season tests. His only but a reliability issue with Bottas’ power unit on the final day. Other than that, the car looks good on the track, without major difficulties, and its drivers are satisfied with the behavior of the car. They said they stepped up. Last year they started strong but were diluted by a lack of evolutions. It is necessary to see how they will handle this course in that aspect.

5

hiding in the alpine

Alpine was the worst one-lap team on the final day of testing, but as they say, one-lap times in pre-season testing don’t matter much and teams can hide a lot. The most shameful case may be the French. Aston Martin had overtaken them in midfield, but their long run was superb and they aimed to start in fifth position. Its drivers worked to focus on their fuel-heavy long-term program with a conservative engine mode. They should be better than they show.

4

Mercedes, lots of homework

Mercedes is no match for Red Bull, but it starts the season from a better base than last year. Considering that in 2022 they started with many more problems and worse cars and they reached the front positions at the end of the season, it is clear that this year they will arrive earlier. But for this they need to correct some problems. Mercedes should not be eliminated at the end of the season, but at the beginning, they start behind Red Bull and Ferrari and Wolff believes that Aston Martin will be first.

In testing it was difficult for them to find the right configuration for a car that seemed nervous, lacking grip and difficult to decipher. On the other hand, ‘porposing’ (rebound) has disappeared. But be careful, Wolff warned that they are hiding and did not rule out the possibility of fighting all year, highlighting the improvements that the team will introduce to their car in the early part of the campaign. It is said that soon they may include a new package with sidepods more like Red Bull.

3

Aston Martin, the big surprise

Undoubtedly, Aston Martin was the big surprise in the pre-season tests of Formula 1. Many agree with this and put it as the third force. Many specialist media have even placed him as options to occupy the third place on the podium in the first race of the year. Aston Martin was the team with the most car changes compared to last year. They got the concept wrong in 2022, so the first car built by Dan Fallows, former Red Bull second Adrian Newey, was new “in 95%” of its parts. The former champion team engineer could hit the key by flying alone and Red Bull took that into account from the start. In fact, according to ‘Auto Motor Und Sport’, “Mercedes engineers believe they have identified that the Aston Martin exhibits cornering characteristics similar to those of the Red Bull.”

Adrian Newey said it was probably one of the best and Toto Wolff said at the end of the tests that Aston Martin could now occupy “second position” from the start. The car is very stable and the times are easy, without breaking a sweat. The team ran a test program with plenty of fuel, keeping it consistent and focused on comparing data, rather than going for lap times. And they caused fear in a great race simulation with better tire wear than Ferrari and the closest thing to Red Bull. The key to that definition may be in the concept car, which is more like Milton Keynes.

They are favorites to lead the middle zone and could battle Mercedes and Ferrari for the podium in the first race. Although the performance of each remains to be seen when they discover the jar of sorting essences. ‘Qualifying’ could be the worst part for Aston Martin as that’s where they’ll find themselves overtaken by Red Bull, Ferrari and Mercedes. They need to come back with better race pace on Sunday. That could be his good choice on the podium while waiting for the evolutionary race of the great teams.

2

Ferrari and its destruction

They started 2022 with the dominant car but lost the development battle against Red Bull, which ended the year with a lot of homework: they had higher degradation, lower engine reliability and higher that air resistance in the straight (lower top speed). They tried to perfect both their car concept and managed to improve the reliability of the engine, so they are expected to have more power. His top speed increased and that was a step forward. But the other side of the coin is his big tire wear in the long run. They didn’t look like they could compete with Red Bull at the start and they had to look behind them. The Ferrari SF23 was quick in one lap and should catch the Red Bulls in the first qualifying of the year, but could dip to race pace against Mercedes and Aston Martin on Sunday. However, the Italians are not worried. Ferrari has yet to find the right settings to strike the perfect balance. It will be necessary to see if after studying the data in the factory they manage to correct part of their diseases in front of the first date.

1

Red Bull crush

Red Bull is the clear favorite for everything in the 2023 Formula World Cup. They started with the advantage of having a champion car, the best concept, and they perfected it. Verstappen has already made it clear that his car has improved, and this is an important warning. They improved the winning car and in the tests they were the best in everything: a lap, in the rhythm of the race and the tires were lower. I think their lead increased in height. Of course, this may be an obvious strategy. Because of their first place in the Manufacturers and the penalty they received for exceeding the spending cap in 2021, they will have less wind tunnel time this year. For this reason, they may decide to make a big initial move to get a good cushion of points while waiting for their rivals to approach the entire course.