The new technical regulations of the Formula 1 failed in an effort to balance grid forces and make racing unpredictable in 2022. The midfielder’s long-awaited rise ultimately didn’t happen, and what was seen was an even bigger difference against the top three teams. But this year of experience with ground effect and its peculiarities has allowed some teams on the grid to better understand the rules or seek winning inspiration. And so what we’ve seen are very different plans for the championship which kicks off this weekend. This is exactly the case with Aston Martin It is Alfa Romeo.

Last year, the two duel for a discreet sixth place in the constructors’ championship, which ended up in the hands of the Swiss team. in 2024, the story is different. Both teams promoted changes and refined their cars. It is important to say it: from the middle group, it was the teams that caught the most attention during the collective tests At bahrain. The feeling is that they have taken steps forward in the competition and now seem to be able to command the block in the middle of the grid, which they had in alpine and on McLaren strong names.

ASTON MARTIN VISES MERCEDES

Aston Martin does not hide its ambitions to fight for victories in the near future. The truth is that the British are investing heavily in this business – with a focus on the billionaire’s contribution to the new factory which will have a new wind tunnel, not to mention the decision to hire Fernando Alonso instead of Sebastian Vettel, who chose to retire from the sport. The double champion will form a duo with Spear Stroll. It should be mentioned that the Canadian suffered a bicycle accident and is still recovering, which sheds light on a possible start of Felipe Drugovitch in F1, as the Brazilian drove the new car during activities at Sakhir last week.

A few days before the presentation of the car, Eric Blandin, Aston Martin’s deputy technical director, even said the team had found a loophole in the regulations that allowed a “90% different car for 2023” to be made. And what we saw on February 13 was a RAM23 it reminded me a lot RB18 from Red Bull. A contradiction, by the way. It is important to say that the concept of “mirror” of rival projects has become common since the days when the team was called Racing Point. But there is a caveat: the model signed by Dan Fallows also has elements that worked on the car of Ferrari.

In any case, the project seems quite right, in fact, and it has its quirks that make it special. Testing at the Bahrain circuit has shown that Aston Martin has enormous potential. For example, Alonso was the driver who covered the most kilometers during the three days of work, reaching 270 laps, or more than 1,400 km, while Drugovich reached the 630 km mark. In addition, the lap times have also been impressive in their consistency, especially since the team has chosen to work more on the tires allocated for the Bahrain GP: C2 and C3, in addition to C1.

In addition to a promising car, the Aston Martin there is also an important asset in Alonso to try to break the bubble and go to the top of the midfield or even annoy Mercedes, who are again facing performance problems. The case is that the Spaniard can solve a fundamental aspect in a team like Lawrence Promenade: the ability to upgrade the equipment throughout the season. A alpine he is there and does not let him lie.

And the double champion remains very strong technically and has enormous skill to fight among the best. The experience accumulated over nearly two decades of F1 certainly won’t miss. “Aston Martin is taking the necessary steps to win in the near future. The team is determined to claim the title and I will do everything possible to make it happen.

However, even though Fernando is considered a well above average driver, having an equally reliable partner who can provide relevant results and insights is essential for the team to continue to evolve. And that’s the odd part about Aston Martin.

It is quite true that Spear Stroll acquired skills over time in Formula 1, achieving expressive results such as podiums and even poles. But he still makes mistakes, some very serious, like the incident with Alonso himself in the United States GP Last year. The Canadian therefore always plays inconsistently, which should weigh on the team’s overall performance.

At this time, it is unclear when the pilot will return to the cockpit. Lance is still recovering from his injuries, while the team is limited to releasing information about his health.

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A SMALL ROCKET CALLED ALFA ROMEO

Since 2022, Alfa Romeo has been working hard on regulations that exploit ground effect. Last year’s car was the only one to respect the minimum weight and was very fast, with a very interesting start to the season. However, messy development and reliability issues dragged the team into the peloton. Now the structure of Hinwil tried to correct the errors of the previous model, even going through a moment of transition with the departure of Frederic Vasseurwho went to Ferrari, and the arrival of Andreas Seidlwho is accredited by his experience at McLaren to lead the project of Audi To Formula 1.

Seidl led McLaren between 2019 and 2022 and was a key player in bringing house order and pulling the team out from the bottom. When he took the position, he had general approval, which helped him develop his role with excellence. The good work made it possible to end the worst moment in the history of the team. Therefore, we can say that the German knows the means necessary to develop a team. And at that time, Alfa Romeo is well served.

And one of the fundamental points so that the Swiss squadron does not fall into the same abyss as in 2022 is the ability to evolve. The C42 had promise, but ended up failing with no updates and parts throughout the year, as the head of engineering revealed Xevi Pujolar“I think we were evolving at the same pace, but we couldn’t produce [peças] at the same pace. This is what we observed, our update packages arrived a bit late. If it is possible to have him earlier, we will definitely take advantage of it, and it will be better in the fight for the championship.”

Not by chance, the Alfa Romeo he has only scored in the championship so far in the races of the Mexico and Brazil, right after a huge update in the US.

Now the idea is to close those gaps, once again the team was able to produce a fast and consistent car. O C43 impressed during pre-season. The model has a most courageous running pace – not even alpine and either McLaren were able to match the performance of the Swiss. Reliability is the only question mark.

As for the pilots, Alfa Romeo continues to build on the experience of Valtteri Bottas and in the youth of Guanyu-Zhou. The Finn unveiled a new face in the stands of the Italian brand, much more relaxed. Without the pressure of defending a top team, Boots seems like the perfect name for the red-black team.

The start of Bahrain GP is scheduled for 12h (from Brasilia). And from this Monday (27), the GRAND PRIZE brings a complete guide to understand everything that is playing in the 2023 season of Formula 1.