Nicola Mosconi, engine engineer of the Ferrari racing team, spoke about the features of the upcoming weekend in Imola. For him, the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix will be a home in every respect.
Q: What can you say about the Imola circuit from a mechanic’s perspective?
Nicola Mosconi: Imola belongs to the category of tracks where the dependence on the efficiency of the power plant is at an average level, i.e. it is located between two poles, one of which is Monaco and the other Spa.
There is only one DRS zone, located on the straight, and this must be taken into account when developing drivetrain tactics to maximize your overtaking opportunities while minimizing the threat of being overtaken.
Riders will have to enter the curbs quite aggressively, especially in the Acqua Minerali and Variante Alta combinations, which must be overcome by choosing the right gear and maintaining the ideal trajectory to avoid reliability problems associated with the risk of over-revving of the engine.
Q: What are the main challenges facing the drivers and teams this weekend?
Nicola Mosconi: This is an old-fashioned circuit, with ascents and descents, but also bends and braking zones that require precise driving technique. Therefore, it is important that the driver is comfortable behind the wheel from the very beginning of the weekend, that he completes the entire training program and gains the necessary confidence so that he can push the limits of the car’s capabilities.
To do this it is necessary that the equipment works reliably and that the team adopts tactics from the start that best suit the rider’s preferences. This should be the case at all circuits, but at Imola the importance of this approach is even greater.
Q: Tell us a little about yourself, you were born near Imola. What was your career like before joining Ferrari?
Nicola Mosconi: This is really my home Grand Prix, because I live only 50 km from the circuit. I graduated from the University of Bologna and wrote all my thesis on Ferrari material, and then continued to work at this company.
Initially I was involved in engine testing, gradually gaining experience as an engine engineer, and worked in the Scuderia test team. Since 2013 I have been working with customer teams that receive engines from Ferrari, and a few years later I became part of the racing team. There I was an engine engineer for Kimi Raikkonen, then I worked with Charles Leclerc, and for the past year and a half I was chief engine engineer for the racing team.
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.
