F1: First Impressions from testing at Jerez

Fernando Alonso of Spain and Ferrari drives the new F14T during day three of Formula One Winter Testing at the Circuito de Jerez on January 30, 2014 in Jerez de la Frontera, Spain.

The roaring machines are back on track. All be it with a completely different sound from the one we had got used to hearing over the years. The V6-turbo charged era is finally upon us with a much lower engine sound and more of electric power in the powertrain. Well that’s not the only thing different. With multiple car launches from teams before the testing at Jerez in Spain, Formula One fans got the first glimpses of the 2014 cars. The pit-lane launches were evident enough that teams,with a sea change in the rules and regulations, were running against time to get their cars ready. Then there were press conferences to understand how the teams and drivers felt about the new car and unanimously all of them pointed towards being blinded by the multiple changes yet trying their best to understand and move forward cautiously.

Predictably the design of the new cars were quite a topic of discussion on social media particularly thanks to the front wing, the oddly looking noses and the diffusers. With the teams testing new waters, barring the only exception of Lotus, which opted out of Jerez, it is predicted that the new machines will undergo a lot of changes before they are ready for the first race in Albert Park on March 16th. For teams it makes sense to work step by step towards critical issues such as reliability, tyres and the car setup under varying conditions. Add to that a lot of work to be done on the braking and acceleration and the electronics on the car. A busy testing season is lined up for the teams and drivers.

Day 1

Post the car launches there was restricted action on the track. Lewis Hamilton was the first on track and had a decent outing before a front wing failure saw him crash into the barriers. Kimi Raikkonen in the Ferrari topped the timed sheets with a 1:27.104 and ended up with the highest number of laps at the end of the day(at 31). Even though the lap times remain irrelevant but they were 10 seconds slower than the last year testing at Jerez. But then it was just the first day and the lap times were expected to improve. SergioPerez -Force India, Jean Eric-Vergne – Toro Rosso and Esteban Gutierrez – Sauber were other drivers who went out on track. Valtteri Bottas was a late entrant on the track in the Williams and ended up with 7 laps. Notable drivers who did an installation lap but stayed away from a timed lap were Sebastian Vettel in the Red-Bull, Jenson Button in the Mclaren as the MP4-29 suffered hydraulic and electrical installation issues and the Caterham of Marcus Ericcson due to a delayed car launch.

Day 2

It was time for wet weather testing, even though rain was predicted sometime during the day a tractor with sprinklers was seen doing the job before the start of the action. Mclaren overcame problems from Day 1 quite remarkably as Jenson Button went fastest by the end of the session(1:24.165). That probably was a confidence booster for Mclaren fans after a forgettable 2013 season. Add to that the news of Eric Boullier, ex Lotus team Principal heading to Mclaren as Racing Director. Mclaren seem to be in spicing up things in 2014. Kimi Raikkonen, Valtteri Bottas and Nico Rosberg lead the time-sheets at some point in time. By Mid-day the teams had switched to slicks and were lapping faster than their earlier times. Rosberg did a remarkable 97 laps, followed by Gutierrez (53), Raikkonen(47) and Button(43).

The Mercedes engine powered teams performed better as the Renault engines suffered from battery and Energy recovering System issues and the French manufacturer is expected to resolve it overnight . That would ease out things for the struggling Red-Bull and Toro Rosso on Day 3. Sebastian Vettel though did 8 laps in the Red-Bull with a best time of 1:38.320 before calling it a day. There were three red flags with Perez stopping on the track with smoke coming out of the Force India, Esteban Guttierez in the Sauber due to a spin into the gravel and the Caterham of Marcus Ericcson stopping on the track late in the day.

Two days into testing, the teams are trying hard to understand the cars and the setup. They are trying a lot of permutations and combinations to get a better understanding of the cars . With a couple of days left before they head off to Bahrain for an 8 days final round of testing in February, they are likely to get in as many laps as possible under their belt and make the drivers get comfortable with the new cars. Renault powered cars seem to be on the back foot while Mercdes and Ferrari have had a better start to the pre-season testing. The new rules and regulations are on their way to re-invigorate Formula One.