Formula 1 testing February 26-28, 2025
https://www.formula1.com/content/dam/fo ... /image.png
EDIT: Map added to facilitate test thread.
Since the site has a lot of new folks, I wanted to offer a few suggestions before the whole testing sit-com gets underway. Hopefully, this write up will maybe dissuade unnecessary ranting and dribble in the testing, team, and car threads.
First, the cars do not have to be legal in testing. They are not FIA scrutinized. Teams can run the cars however they wish.
Don’t translate fastest lap time as the fastest car. We don’t know fuel loads, tire pressures, testing regimen, power unit settings, aero settings, what exactly is being tested, what the team’s program is, or what they are looking to accomplish every session. Instead of watching for fastest lap, watch the general behavior of the car: Is it twitchy or calm? Does it tend to over or understeer in medium speed corners? Is it plowing in slow speed corners? Is the car spinning tires or hooking up out of low speed corners? Is the car porposing, or is it calm and steady as she goes at all speeds? Are drivers locking the tires often (that’s sometimes a sign of a lack of feel from the car)? Are drivers hitting the apex? Is the car burning certain portions of bodywork? How does the car handle bumps and undulations--steady or twitchy? These kinda questions lead to more informed answers.
When a driver is interviewed, is he confident or already talking about updates to come in the first, and subsequent races? Listen for how many times he says, “ummm” and stares into space. The longer they seek to find answers, typically the worse it is. Alonso and Hamilton are usually the most honest, and can’t seem to hide their enthusiasm or depression.
Look for consistent lap times and A LOT of completed laps. You want to see your team pounding out laps in the hundreds. Teams desperately need data from completed, daily programs, and that happens through actual laps completed. Teams that are running the most laps are typically having the least problems, and most importantly, are gathering the most actual track data, and completing their programs. Track data is compared to wind tunnel data, and previous years data for correlation. Correlation between wind tunnel and track is the sine qua non of testing. Correlation is what every team desperately strives for, because it means what they accomplish in the tunnel translates to the track.
Cars sitting in the garage for hours and hours being repaired or sawed open is usually not a good sign. That said, teams will have to make a lot of adjustments in testing, and there likely will be some parts that fail, so there will be some unexpected — but to be expected — additional garage hours.
It does not mean the car is bad if it misses an hour fixing a part. It means their engineering team is working hard to make the car as light as possible, and sometimes parts fail. This is normal development. The cars are also new in their engineering and set-up from previous years, and so the mechanics are still learning the car and are not as fast as they will be by race 20. This is normal, and part of the “niggles” that go with every new car.
DON’T PANIC if your favorite driver loses an hour in a session. It’s ok. But 4 or 5 hours, that’s usually not a good sign. Generally speaking, think of consecutive hours sitting in the garage as consecutive game losses in a sport: one is a fluke, two is a pattern, three is a problem, four is a serious concern. Five is a disaster.
A driver binning the car one time in testing just shows they are pushing and finding limits. It’s not preferred, but $hit happens. It’s constant off track excursions, spins, missing apexes, graining and locking tires, that point to a possible problem if it persists day after day.
Drivers won’t really be pushing till likely near the end of testing (if at all) when the team and driver know and trust the car more and they want to start to find the upper limits. First day of testing they won’t be testing the upper limits.
Glory runs do exist. Sandbagging does exist. So it’s in the patterns and consistencies (good and bad) over ALL testing between both cars over all days that offers the best idea of where the team, car, and driver actually are. Spikes of fast or slow laps are usually meaningless in the larger context.
Stay calm and observe testing as a whole rather than one good or bad session. Take everything as grains of salt and simply pointing in a positive or negative direction. Teams expressions and demeanor hint at a positive or negative situation (remember Aston in 2023). The teams will have an idea of who is basically where as they have access to technical information that we don’t. They have high tech RPM counting data, GPS, and extrapolating from this and other readings, they can get a general idea of who is killing it, and who isn’t. That usually leaks, and some of the guys here at F1 Technical that are experienced with good connections to the paddock, will be able to extrapolate for you a pretty good idea of who is where.
Ultimately, nobody truly knows where things stand until race one, when finally teams have to drop their pants and show their junk. No team ultimately knows until Q3 race 1 exactly what the cars have in the last 5% of the car and drivers capability. Therefore, Q3 session at Albert Park teams will push all settings to maximum with drivers pushing full tilt because the final “all in” lap isn’t fully exerted in anger until that moment. Keep an eye out for the Albert Park, Q3.
That said, exactly which team/driver combo is at the top of the sharp end won’t fully clarify until about race 5 when different track cornering characteristics, different tarmac types, different weather conditions, and different temperatures have all been raced.
Here are my five C’s to remember when it comes to testing:
Completion. Did the car complete hundreds and hundreds of laps? Did teams complete their programs?
Confidence. Is the driver driving like he is confident in his car, or is he locking tires, missing apexes, and spinning / graining the wheels? Is he smiling with confidence, or downtrodden with confusion.
Consistency. Is the car consistent in its lap times? Is it consistent in its response to adjustments? Is it consistent in its handling or erratic? Does it consistently wear tires through a normal wear cycle, or consistently burn them/blister them prematurely?
Cohesion. Is the team cohesively working together with the driver and car as one single organism? Is there good rapport, honest candor, and a positive, cohesive energy exuding from the team, the driver, and leadership?
Correlation. Are the cars data points from the factory correlating with the data points from the track? Correlation tees up the entire year as development is shaped by wind tunnel numbers. Correlating track data with factory data is critical to making the car faster.
Finally, many in F1 technical know their $hit, and you would be well advised to read their comments and learn from their experience. I promise, they likely know more than you. Consider it a privilege to have found this place, and may I suggest reading more often than arguing.
Good luck to all the drivers and teams. May the best and most deserving team and driver win. May this championship be won by race craft, and not race crashes.
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