Originally the teams were to test the significantly improved cars at Imola, but since the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix was canceled most of the new products have premiered in Monaco. At the same time, it was clear that on a relatively slow city circuit it was impossible to properly test their effectiveness, and this work only began today during training in Barcelona.
Unlike Monaco, the Catalan ring is the best fit for this, so some teams, including Ferrari, brought additional updates to Spain.
The SF-23 received a new hood, larger side pontoons, a rear wing and a redesigned underbody, all of which, of course, got the spotlight. Scuderia hopes these innovations will optimize airflow around the rear of the car while having a positive effect on cooling system performance.
Many immediately noticed that when developing these new products, Ferrari decided to adopt some of the ideas of the very fast Red Bull Racing car.
In turn, the team from Milton Keynes also presented a number of new products in Barcelona, in particular, the RB19 received a slightly improved bottom with a modified rim configuration, as well as a new diffuser. As highlighted in Red Bull Racing, they took inspiration from analyzing the design of these elements on rival cars, which is curious in its own way.
Mercedes introduced the main innovations in Monaco, but the significantly improved W14 also has minor changes: for example, the upper deflector has disappeared from the mirror housings – this is done to improve the quality of airflow to the rear of the car. The diffuser has also been slightly redesigned – such modifications are always aimed at increasing the efficiency of this most important element of the machine’s aerodynamic equipment.
Aston Martin continues to refine its already quite fast AMR23 with slightly different end plates on the front fender of the car, which affects the flow around the front tyres. Accordingly, the adjustable wingplane has also been changed, but during training the team will conduct a comparative analysis of the updated and previous versions, deciding which one will be used on Saturday and Sunday.
Some changes have also been made to the rear wing endplates and the auxiliary rear wing – two versions of these elements will also be tested during training.
The rear wing has also been updated on the AlphaTauri cars – the team hopes that on a track like the Catalan Ring it will help increase the level of downforce generated by the aerodynamic elements in this part of the chassis.
The McLaren MCL60 has new front brake ducts and Williams has reported that the FW45 now has a new Gurney flap on the front fender, as well as plans to test a bonnet in Barcelona with a different rear configuration to improve cooling efficiency.
Alpine, Alfa Romeo and Haas have not prepared any new products for the Spanish podium.
Source: F1 News
I am Christopher Clyde, an experienced journalist and content writer with a passion for sports. I have been writing about Formula 1 news for the past five years and am currently employed as an author at athletistic.com, one of the top sports websites in the US.
