2022 Winter Testing Part 1: Barcelona 23 - 25th February

[DiogoBrand]

https://www.instagram.com/p/CaVaFHlr2X4 ... _copy_link

So McLaren was already pushing the car to its limits and even so they didn't top the charts!
OMG! McLaren is gonna be so slow this year!

lol, I dunno which testing you were following because Lando was the fastest driver of the day!

https://www.f1technical.net/news/23637

hadn't seen the results from the afternoon yet.

[djos]

lol, the phrase look before you leap springs to mind (pun intended).

[Hoffman900]

Part of me does worry a bit about safety with the new regs. The cars are more aero sensitive and faster in the high speed (well about the same as last year) and coming into fast braking zones faster, so they're faster where you don't want them to be, and slower where they weren't going to fly off the track too far (slow speed sections).

[Ryar]

On Autosport live commentary.

14:03 "Porpoising - it’s the buzzword at the start of this new rules era. Effectively the cars rock or bounce up and down as the air attaches and reattached itself when they approach vmax. Like yesterday, it’s Hamilton who appears to be suffering most with it this morning. The Merc is wallowing even before the 400m board on the run to Turn 1. You can here the revs rise and fall in sync as the W13 is unsettled. Looks a touch violent. Anyone got a number for the osteopath?"
Matt Kew

[JonoNic]

Has any team run without a front wing to check their balance or losses? Better yet,would it be necessary to check this?

[F1Krof]

Mercedes seem to have some issues. Hamilton only managed 3 laps so far.

[BosF1]

Has any team run without a front wing to check their balance or losses? Better yet,would it be necessary to check this?

No, they haven't. Why would they?
When a car lost a front wing during races in the last year, they became pretty much undriveable as the loss of pressure (downforce) at the front makes hard braking impossible without locking up.

Although downforce is now mainly produced bij the Venturi tunnels, it doesn't mean that the front wing can be removed. It still produces a significant amount of downforce

[NathanOlder]

Mercedes seem to have some issues. Hamilton only managed 3 laps so far.

Could just be changing a large amount of components , RedBull had only done 4 laps on the last update at AMuS.

[JonoNic]

Has any team run without a front wing to check their balance or losses? Better yet,would it be necessary to check this?

No, they haven't. Why would they?
When a car lost a front wing during races in the last year, they became pretty much undriveable as the loss of pressure (downforce) at the front makes hard braking impossible without locking up.

Well cold tires and understeer on the first lap may help them judge how aggressive they are willing to be. If the wings play a lesser role in aero, then by how much?

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[mclaren111]

Part of me does worry a bit about safety with the new regs. The cars are more aero sensitive and faster in the high speed (well about the same as last year) and coming into fast braking zones faster, so they're faster where you don't want them to be, and slower where they weren't going to fly off the track too far (slow speed sections).

It's all the bloody weight they keep on adding for "safety"... But it might just make 2022 more exciting...

[west52keep64]

On Autosport live commentary.

14:03 "Porpoising - it’s the buzzword at the start of this new rules era. Effectively the cars rock or bounce up and down as the air attaches and reattached itself when they approach vmax. Like yesterday, it’s Hamilton who appears to be suffering most with it this morning. The Merc is wallowing even before the 400m board on the run to Turn 1. You can here the revs rise and fall in sync as the W13 is unsettled. Looks a touch violent. Anyone got a number for the osteopath?"
Matt Kew

Is that from yesterday? It must be based on the timestamp.

The updates from today suggest Merc are playing with the setup:

10:05
Only three laps for Hamilton this morning, with early whispers that the Mercedes is slightly trickier to handle this morning than it was yesterday. The W13 looked nailed down around the corners but did the team make some set up changes overnight that have affected the handling? We'll keep an eye on the Mercedes man when he next goes out...

10:20
A new personal best for Hamilton, and this run is looking much smoother than earlier. The Mercedes was right up there yesterday in terms of the cars that impressed the paddock the most, along with Ferrari and McLaren.
Red Bull's overall package was harder to judge, as it looked like they were heavier on fuel compared to their rivals.

[matt_s]

Check the times again. McLaren we’re fastest by half a second. I think the drivers are always pushing, lap time is dependent on lots of other factors. Engine map, fuel load to name just 2. Also remember mcLaren normally run quite conservative in practice sessions during a GP weekend.

Also, "it's nice to push the limit" could mean "I was driving balls-out every lap, and the car was turned up to eleven! yeeee-hawwww!!", or it could mean "once in a while I tried the odd corner/sector/braking zone at the limit even though the car was running fat and turned-down."

[Rikhart]

Speaking of feelings: For all drivers, the first few kilometers with the new generation of cars were a journey into the unknown. The cars differ greatly from their predecessors in terms of aerodynamics. And the higher weight was also noticeable: "It makes a big difference. Everything feels a little slower and more sluggish. But in the end the lap times weren't as bad as feared," analyzed Norris.

Wow, even more sluggish and slower? Is this even still F1? I hate the direction this sport is going.

[Fabien]

The pace is pretty similar to the first day of testing in 2017 and these cars ended up being really fast. So no reason to worry. And anyway, for safety reason, F1s will probably never be really faster than they are now (a bit like the best lap times around Le Mans stay on purpose around 3'20)

[JPBD1990]

Something actually a bit interesting and informative.