Alfa Romeo is one of the latest to get its own simulator – it didn’t appear at the Hinwil base until 2019, but so far it hasn’t been as perfect as the comparable equipment the top Formula 1 teams have.
The simulator is becoming an increasingly important tool for fine-tuning cars and preparing for races, but if Mercedes, Ferrari, Red Bull Racing or McLaren have been using it for a long time, teams with more modest financial resources are clearly lagging behind in this area.
Valtteri Bottas has something to compare with as he has spent the last five years working on the Mercedes simulator, and when he became an Alfa Romeo racer he immediately felt the difference: “When I first tried the Alfa Romeo simulator , I saw noticeable differences from what Mercedes has.
Mercedes has been using and improving such equipment for a long time, while our team only got it a few years ago. Of course we still have a lot of catching up to do, but there have been significant improvements since the day I first tried it. This year the simulator has already proved its worth, especially during the last weekends.”
Valtteri has replaced his famous compatriot Kimi Räikkönen at Alfa Romeo and, unlike the 2007 world champion, is working on the simulator with great enthusiasm.
“He trains in the simulator after every race,” confirms Frederic Vasser, Swiss team principal. “If we were at the initial level using the simulator at the beginning of last year, then from this season we can already use it on race weekends to find settings.”
The simulator played a very important role in preparing for the Miami Grand Prix as the race took place on a brand new track.
“This tool proved to be very useful, it helped to study the configuration of the US ring and to try out different settings and angles of attack of the wings. Thanks to the simulator, we got an idea of the new runway before we flew to Miami,” said Bottas.
Since the Finn finished seventh in that race, it’s hardly worth doubting his words.
Source: F1 News
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