Given that Max Verstappen has a 100 percent record of pole position in F1 2024, qualifying does not appear to be a weakness of the Red Bull RB20, however, technical director Pierre Wache says it is.
After its record-breaking dominance in 2023, Red Bull has taken back control in F1 2024, with the team and its three-time world champion Verstappen at the top of the constructors’ and drivers’ standings after three rounds.
Verstappen has been on pole in all three races so far, turning two into wins, Wache says Red Bull is struggling to find the best way to balance qualifying and race set-up, meaning that despite Verstappen’s heroism, I don’t have the most productive car. On the grid in one lap.
“When we make adjustments to improve the paint on the tires, you know you also have to give up anything on the car,” Wache told RacingNews365. com. “It’s at the expense of anything when you’re looking to save the tyres.
“You can see it, for example, in qualifying, where we’re not the most productive team. Sometimes we pay the price for not understanding something, I’m sure, because then we have to adapt more to the race pace, but in doing so we sacrifice a bit of qualifying.
“So if we understood that facet of the car better, we could be smart both in qualifying and in the race. However, we still lack some data on this. “
The 2024 Max Verstappen F1 Drivers’ Championship standings
Revealed: 2024 Red Bull F1 Constructors’ Championship
The current generation of F1 cars, which employ a ground-effect philosophy for downforce, turns out to have the disadvantage of being more complicated when it comes to set-up, with Red Bull’s rivals Mercedes talking about their machines being on a knife’s edge. during his career. He’s struggling to challenge Red Bull again.
However, Wache says the tyres also particularly contribute to this difficulty, as well as the characteristics when fuel is high compared to low, making it “very difficult” to find the “ideal” setup to paint between qualifying and the race.
“It’s not just because of the existing cars that it’s trickier to find a smart set-up and a smart balance between qualifying and the race,” Wache said. “Tyres also play a role. For example, the rear tires have much wider width.
“Added to this is the ‘ground effect’ of the current generation of cars. This makes it more complicated to drive on low or high fuel, because the car lands a lot in both cases. This difference is noticeable to the driver, but also to the driver in terms of tyre wear, which differs enormously in both situations.
“Therefore, it is very difficult to find the best balance in an optimal set-up for qualifying and the race. The combination of those factors, in my opinion, makes it very difficult to find an ideal set-up for the existing car generation. “
Red Bull will return to winning tactics at the upcoming Japanese Grand Prix after their setback in Melbourne, as Verstappen looks to add a hat-trick of victories at Suzuka.
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