Wynters wrote: ↑19 Feb 2019, 15:17
Phil wrote: ↑19 Feb 2019, 14:54
I think it's intriguing, especially given the differences in aero philosophies that Ferrari (and more so Sauber/Alfa) has gone in a very different direction than Mercedes and somewhat RedBull has. The big question here is, if Mercedes have got it wrong and missed a beat or not. If they have (or Ferrari have), it won't be as easy to change.
Anderson seems to be pretty certain that the times Mercedes were posting yesterday are a very accurate representation of the best the drivers could get out of it.
"The car is where the car is and the driver's can't make up for much."
I assume he's trolling. They may well not have the fastest car, but I suspect it's unlikely that Bottas and Hamilton were ringing the neck of the car on Day 1.
Of course they were pushing. The question is with how much engine power (mapping) and how much fuel. Then there are also tires and set-up to take into account. They could have been pushing relative to a longer stint (aka race stint) or a QF sim (doubtful given the weight). I assume Anderson was reporting on what looks like drivers being on the limit within what the current package allows (fuel, setup, tires etc).
From what I gather, the front-wing philosophy could also have a larger impact on tire wear. If what AMuS is reporting is true, it seems the Sauber and less extreme Ferrari philosophy could mean that their front-wing generates less downforce but have a clean airflow to the back. This might mean their car is less draggy. Mercedes's concept is somewhat opposite with more downforce at the front, which causes more turbulent air around the front tires that needs to be cleaned up. This results in overall more drag. More downforce could also mean that it could be better for the tires. The big question mark is, if the Sauber/Ferrari concept wing works and if they found a way to get more downforce despite that front-wing.
In the AMuS article, an engineer speculates that due to the higher rakes, it allows them to have the front-wing closer to the ground which is how they might be solving it.
At the end of the day, I'm still expecting quite a big gap between the top 3 and the rest. The big question simply is, if the two different aero concepts offer a huge advantage over one another or if at the end of the day, they remain similar with different pros and cons...