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Three Formula 1 races down in 2011, and I’ve had the same thought in my mind after every single race – illustrated by the title of this months column. The Pirellis! I blame the Pirellis for putting me in a dilemma every single time someone pitted – before I could analyze the situation and guess their tyre strategy, the same driver headed to the pits once again! So, what on earth is happening in F1?
F1, it seems, has suddenly got a new lease of life – racing has become unpredictable and pit stop strategies even more. Old myths about more stops equaling to a greater loss of time have been thrown out the window, and the best person to ask would be Red Bull Racing’s Mark Webber.
Pre-season uncertainties about the Pirelli tyres, KERS, and DRS have been answered – and how. It seems that these new regulations have tweaked F1 racing just as per the fan’s orders. Pre-season notions that Red Bull Racing and Ferrari would rule the roost and McLaren might not even make it past Q1 of qualifying in Australia have been proven wrong. Red Bull Racing are very much setting the pace at every GP venue, and it’s not Ferrari but McLaren who are taking the fight to the Bulls.
Mercedes are still way off the front runners pace, and are competing in the mid-field with Lotus Renault GP, Sauber, and Force India. Of the newcomers, Team Lotus Racing have taken great strides, and, in fact, were ahead of a Sauber and Williams in China. HRT too are making rapid strides on track – from being unable to qualify for the Australian GP, the team clocked a lap time nearly 2 seconds better than the target elimination lap time in China. What’s even more important to note is that HRT’s lap time in China was only half a second off the Virgin Racing cars!
While I’ve done a quick summary on the performance through the first three GPs of the season, I’ll also attempt to frame my thoughts on what defined F1 racing in Australia, Malaysia, and China. After all, the new regulations were primarily to make the action more interesting for the fans, but how have the teams and drivers coped with it?
The Pirelli tyres clearly need to be given credit for making the action exciting and unpredictable. The highly degradable tyres were everyone’s worry pre-season. Teams and drivers were unhappy with the lifespan of each of the compounds, and were unsure of how they would pan out over race distance. However, three races into the season it seems that the Pirelli tyres last just long enough to make racing interesting.
The tyres are one of the biggest reasons for the entertainment on-track and in the pits. Mark Webber pitted four times to his 4th place finish in Malaysia. Similarly in China, the race was a toss-up between regular two stoppers and the bolder three stopping drivers. Result? Hamilton and Mark Webber, who finished 1st and 3rd respectively, both pitted 3 times for new rubber as compared to Sebastian Vettel who started from pole and pitted only twice.
The first three races have made it clear that strategy will be key to winning races this season, and this is again where Ferrari has failed to shine. Teams have to understand their tyres better and use them to their advantage in the races. It’s becoming evident that pitting for new rubber works better than driving conservatively to save old rubber.
And it’s not only in qualifying that tyres make a key difference. Going back to China again, Ferrari were seen using the softer compound as early as the Q1 part of qualifying. And the reason for that was that the difference between the prime and option tyres was nearly 3 seconds a lap, which is enough to have teams opt for their softer tyres in the earlier stages of qualifying.
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KERS too has played an important role in F1. The power boost system was a headache for most F1 teams when first introduced in 2009. And its re-introduction in 2011 hasn’t been entirely trouble free either. Before we come to the issues that the teams are facing, it’s important to note that KERS is extremely important this season. The KERS boost helps you off the starting line and can be used effectively to attack and defend positions during the race. In fact, Michael Schumacher used his KERS to successfully defend against a KERS+DRS enabled Fernando Alonso in China. |
However, the KERS problems that the teams are facing relates to overheating of the KERS battery. Surprisingly, Red Bull Racing hasn’t been able to sort out their KERS issues as yet. Ferrari too have had niggles in their system. While most teams haven’t found reliable ways of using the system, they do know that sorting out KERS sooner rather than later is critical as there are visible benefits while setting a quick lap time. Thus far, Mercedes, McLaren, and Force India have had the most reliable KERS systems.
The Drag-Reduction-System or the Adjustable-Rear-Wing is yet another component that is an effect of the rule changes. This movable flap reduces the drag created by the rear wing and helps achieve greater straight-line speed. I have voiced my reservations regarding this system in my earlier columns, however, DRS is very important to setting a quick lap time – as it is, of course, to overtaking the car ahead of you. A well designed DRS system can add up to 12-15km/h extra to your straight line speed.
The DRS is allowed unlimited use in qualifying and drivers have used it to their benefit. However, the implementation needs to be precise, and even if the system is used marginally earlier than it should be, the car could lose much needed downforce at the exit of the corner resulting in a spin – just ask Adrian Sutil about his last corner spin in Australia!
The other part of the DRS implementation is during Race Day. DRS zones are marked on track and pre-informed to teams and drivers. The DRS zone has seen some obvious increase in overtaking. Many critics have labeled DRS as artificial racing, but, at the end of the day, it’s certainly delivering the goods. Nevertheless, my worries about the DRS are two – can the fans watching the action in the stands see the movable rear wing plate, and can the FIA effectively police deployment during the race? Alonso’s DRS was left ‘on’ for nearly 300 meters after he crossed the zone in China.
Fortunately for Formula 1, the areas of concern pre-season are the exact reasons why F1 action has been so exciting in the first three races. While many purists haven’t taken to the new rule changes positively, I’m convinced that this is the right step forward for a sport that’s waiting to be embraced by over a hundred million Asians! |
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