Mika Hakkinen believes that with Formula 1’s transition to the new technical regulations in 2022, the nature of racing has changed significantly, the battle has escalated and it has become easier to overtake. To make his opinion more convincing, the two-time world champion drew a comparison with other series in which he had to perform at different stages of his career.
Mika Hakkinen: “In my opinion there are noticeable changes in the races. I can judge this from my own experience – I suggest recalling the various categories I’ve played on open wheeled cars. First it was Formula Ford, and those cars had no wings at all.
There were no front or rear wings, but chasing and overtaking rivals was quite easy. Then I had the chance to try my hand at a series called Formula 2000. There the cars were already bigger and they used slicks. The aerodynamics were more advanced and I found it was simply impossible to stay close behind other cars in corners.
The car in front of it created an area of aerodynamic disturbances and you started to be cut off the race track. I had to think about what tactics and steering technique to use, what trajectory to take before entering the corner and finally overtaking.
And all these difficulties were due to the fact that the wings of the car in front, cutting the air, created a turbulent zone, so that your car began to slide when cornering. Of course I had the same problems in Formula 1.
But now, thanks to the transition to the new technical regulations, cars can hold each other much tighter and it has become easier to overtake. So I think the new rules have had a positive effect. If we talk about the looks of the cars, they look cool again. They have an impressive design, but the downside is that they are just gigantic!
When I started in Formula 1, my car weighed 600 kg, now they weigh almost 800 kg. The weight has increased considerably, although this is partly due to new safety requirements. But the cars are still too heavy and the speeds in Formula 1 usually drop due to two factors.
First is the weight. Second, the brakes. Although the brakes are still needed! (laughs)
Source: F1 News
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