Tomorrow is the day - the start of the 2023 Formula One Season with three days of pre-season testing at the Bahrain International Circuit. And, although teams have already had the chance to take their cars out on what is known as a "shakedown," they will officially be taking to the track alongside each other for the first time tomorrow morning. So, what can we expect from testing? Apart from sandbagging and a whole lot of secrecy, who knows. What we do know though, is that there are a whole lot of questions going into this long-awaited testing session.
Who will emerge as title contenders?
In this current era of Formula One, three teams seem to be dominating more than the others and it seems quite plausible that Red Bull, Mercedes and Ferrari will take the reigns on the 2023 season, yet again.
Still, the start of a new Formula One season gives teams a blank slate and chances are, at the end of the testing sessions, the pecking order will be somewhat mixed with unexpected results. We do need to, however, take the final testing results with a pinch of salt. Some teams do not want their rivals to know their full potentials, so the best way to hide it? Sandbagging. A term you'll hear quite frequently over the course of the next few days.
Unfortunately, testing won't give us the answer of exactly who will be title contenders. But, it'll give us fans some idea of what we're to expect in the upcoming season.
Has Red Bull's cost cap penalty hurt them?
As we are aware, one of the biggest stories from last season was that Red Bull breached the cost cap which therefore resulted in a harsh penalty for the team from Milton Keynes. With a $7 million fine and a cut in development time, has Red Bull been able to minimise the impacts that have resulted from the penalty?
Well, again, it's a waiting game.
What we need to consider, however, is that although the team are trying to keep the damage to a minimum, this season there have been some slight regulation changes meaning that things may not be as simple and straightforward for Red Bull compared to their 2022 campaign. Even Christian Horner himself described it as "limiting significantly."
However,other team principles, such as Mercedes' Toto Wolff, believe that the impact isn't "going to be too big."
Have Mercedes ran into trouble already?
Talking of Mercedes. Last week, they took to the track in Silverstone for their "shakedown" days. However, it wasn't plain sailing and the first day ended up as a session full of niggles. Should they be worried about these?
The team, itself, doesn't seem too concerned. What does concern them is the short period of time teams have for testing this year. If the same "niggles" crop up again they may not have the time to rectify these. At least, though, they'll be prepared for them.
And, as for the porpoising that plagued the team last year? Data and footage shows that they haven't got on top of that just yet either.
Is three days enough for pre-season testing?
One of the biggest concerns teams have this season is the limited time for pre-season testing. In past years, testing has lasted over the course of around 2 weeks, meaning teams are inundated with time to analyse all of their data. This season, however, is different, with testing lasting only 3 days and the first race of the season taking place just one week later. Time is limited.
As mentioned above, Mercedes have voiced their concerns over the limited testing time but they're not the only ones. Fernando Alonso, who has jumped ship to Aston Martin for 2023, is worried about his limited time in the car before the Bahrain Grand Prix on the 5th March. He said:
“This is the only sport in the world where you do one-and-a-half days practice and then you’re into a World Championship.” (Independent)
To be fair, he has a very valid point. However, we have to look on the bright side. A shorter testing period might be more beneficial for some teams. But, are three days enough for teams to collect all their data? Time will tell.
So, there we have it. Just a handful of questions we have going into the testing period. I'm very intrigued to see how the testing sessions play out, as well as being extremely excited that F1 is back! Don't forget, you can watch testing live on Sky Sports F1 from Thursday 23rd February at 7am.
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