2023 F1 cars hit the track this week
All 10 F1 teams are set to take part in the only pre-season test of 2023. Here's what you need to know.
A three-day test later this week in Bahrain should give us the first rough indications of which F1 teams excelled during the winter break.
Current suspicions are that Ferrari, Aston Martin and Williams have made significant improvements, while concern surrounds McLaren and Mercedes.
Ferrari’s new car, the SF-23, has supposedly quashed last year’s reliability gremlins, according to F1.com, and a general aura of confidence now surrounds them.
Scott Mitchell-Malm, a reporter for The Race, said at Ferrari’s car launch it was impossible to escape the feeling that the team had “a really good winter”.
If that’s true, it raises the tantalising prospect that Ferrari could knock Red Bull off their perch in 2023.
At Aston Martin, their new AMR23 car is reportedly 95% brand new, according to Autosport, while technical director Dan Fallows called it a “significant development”.
The AMR23 is the first Aston Martin car that Fallows has overseen the design of. That’s important because he previously worked at Red Bull for over a decade, where he headed up their aerodynamics department.
His expertise might’ve now paid off.
F1 journalist Mark Hughes said on Twitter he was hearing “very positive noises” about the AMR23.
Wind tunnel numbers were rumoured to be “very, very good”, he said, adding that new recruit Fernando Alonso “may just have finally got himself in the right place”.
Surely Aston Martin is now wondering if they can lead the midfield?
Meanwhile, there are also suggestions Williams has taken a good step forward with the FW45. Remember, they finished at the back last season.
Lawrence Barretto, a reporter for F1.com, said on Twitter: “They've hit all their targets and providing it correlates on track, there's genuine hope the team will be part of the pack.”
At McLaren, the mood is not so good.
As has been widely reported, McLaren’s new team boss Andrea Stella admitted he was “not entirely happy” with the new MCL60 car and a good step forward may only happen “soon”.
Things aren’t much better at Mercedes.
According to Autosport, there are whispers the team has not hit its wind tunnel targets. Hamilton said he hoped to hit the ground running, “but it's not always the case.”
Truthfully, public comments like these only give us an inkling of how each team is feeling about their pace. Nothing is concrete and some might be playing tricks with what they’re choosing to say.
We’ll likely learn a bit more during testing in Bahrain on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, but even then it won’t be overly helpful for determining who’s the fastest because teams tend to focus on mileage rather than lap times.
Allegations of deliberately going a bit slower - known as “sandbagging” - are always rife too.
Sadly, that means we likely won’t know everyone’s real pace until the opening race in Bahrain on March 5.