This weekend in Singapore marks the return of the proper down-force battle in Formula 1 after the low-drag challenges of Spa and Monza. The switch comes as McLaren F1 – refreshingly honest – basically admit their car is currently a lipsticked porker.
Team CEO Zak Brown says they will continue with the current car – not much choice there – “but unfortunately we’ve produced an extremely poor racecar that is not that responsive to changes…that inherently we don’t have a good racecar.”
McLaren is presently sixth in the championship with apparently little hope of improvement.
“I would expect, unfortunately, similar type of results – maybe a little more circuit-specific – over the balance of the year. I certainly wouldn’t expect any miracles.”
Tactfully ignoring ‘our’ F1 team, Autosport has compared the leading three designs and their 2017-2018 iterations.
Many fans will be aware the Mercedes is the longest car on the grid – length equals stability at the expense of a little agility, though of course wing-based aerodynamics and designed-in ‘rake’ both affect this. Recognise, then that the three pointed star goes into the pointy end of the championship with some mechanical and aero advantage. But how much?
Red Bull may be watching developments at Toro Rosso with some concern, but it can take some comfort from its form around low-speed circuits like Monaco earlier this year. The team has maintained its 2017 rake setting for this year and tops the group with a 1.9 degree jack-up at the car’s rear.
Ferrari, as is often the case, appears to have a ‘car for all seasons’ and must be more engaged by its driver line-up. They have a longer wheelbase this year which will make their 1.53 degree rake even more effective.
Autosport reckons Mercedes may not be feeling it is favourite, but its rake is the lowest of the three top teams at 1.25 degrees (up from 1.20 in 2017) while it has retained its 2017 wheelbase length. In Autosport’s opinion, the team’s “brilliant” management of race tactics and strategy have made brought the silver cars to their current points position in the championship.
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