New opponents for Verstappen and Red Bull?

Friday in the analysis

It’s already 11:45 PM in Saudi Arabia, so we’ll be closing the ticker at this point. It works for you The Formel1.de YouTube channel But further!

Kevin Scheuren and Christian Nimmervoll now report back with their great video analysis. They both carry the following themes in their bags today:

Long term data analysis
Results and votes
– Hamilton loses his caretaker
– Wolf in FIA PK
– AlphaTauri Crisis
– More F1 news
– Back Ralf Schumacher
Questions from channel members

And a quick preview for tomorrow: FT3 at 2:30pm local time, qualifying at 6:00pm. And of course we’ll get back to you in the morning with a new tape.

Have a nice evening, enjoy our analysis and see you tomorrow!

Favorite alpine secret?

Perhaps not necessarily for victory, but with P4 and P6 it was a good result for the French not only in the timetables. Long distances also seem to be appropriate. “It was a productive Friday,” says Esteban Ocon.

I tried different things that “would help us in qualifying and in the race,” he confirms and explains: “So far the car looks strong and I think we can benefit more from qualifying tomorrow night.”

His teammate Gasly is also “good” after P6 and explains: “The car feels good. We have a good idea in the direction we want to go with the setup.” He also announced that there is still room for improvement.

We are excited!

Williams: Another chance for points?

It was P14 and P18 for Albon and Sargent today and according to Norris, Williams is definitely ahead of McLaren. “It was a very positive day. There is definitely pace in the car,” explains Albon.

He’s “optimistic,” he says and points out that qualifying in FT2 is still a bit lacking. Summing it up, Albon said: “But everything else looks fine. I don’t want to talk too early, but the car looks pretty good.”

“So let’s see how it goes,” Albon laughs. After all, his teammate and rookie sergeant already knows the track from Formula 2. His day also went “quite smoothly”, according to the American.

“The pace doesn’t look too bad and we hope we can build on it,” he said, cautiously optimistic.

Norris: Almost done at the end

Lando Norris is less optimistic after today’s P12. “I couldn’t manage my lap in the first practice session. But it’s tight. Only a tenth of a second separated me from last place. If I had made a little mistake, I would have been last,” he explains.

“It’s tight in the midfield. The Alps are in front of the whole midfield, and it also looks like Williams is noticeably faster than us,” he muses and explains: “The car is OK. I have some balance issues, but we’re making the best of the situation.”

He doesn’t seem very confident…

‘Solid’: Haas satisfied after P8 and P15

Nico Hulkenberg made it into the top ten today in eighth place and explains: “We had a clean Friday – no accidents, crashes or major problems.” According to the German, the lap speed feels “competitive”.

On the other hand, long distances are more of a challenge. This was also the case in Bahrain. “That’s our focus now,” he confirms, and teammate Magnussen, despite M15, says the day was “good.”

The goal is Q3, Dane explains, and team boss Günther Steiner reports: “FT1 and FT2 were very strong today. There were no problems at all, we solved the whole program.”

But he also admits that “more performance” still needs to be found.

AlphaTauri: Right behind the top ten

P13 and P17 today for Tsunoda and De Vries. According to the Japanese, AlphaTauri is a little behind the teams “constantly fighting for P10.” But Tsunoda remembered, “We still have another day to get it together.”

“There were no major problems in FT1 and FT2, but we know we have to find more performance in the car. Even if Q3 is the target, Q2 is more possible tomorrow than last week in Bahrain,” said Tsunoda.

“Ultimately tonight we’re going to analyze all the data to see how we can improve our performance. Tire wear doesn’t seem as bad as expected until we can use full throttle,” he said forcefully.

Team de Vries led on the street circuit for the first time and therefore still had some catching up to do. But it was also a “productive” day for him.

Theoretically…

… By the way, Alonso was much closer to Verstappen. Down to 0.044 seconds to be exact! My colleague Kevin Herrmann has worked on this in this overview.

By the way, it’s just a small introduction, because it’s in our area Video analysis from 9:45 p.m We will of course also analyze the long distances in detail for you again!

Marco: “I hope that’s enough”

“We are satisfied,” the Austrian said after Friday on “Sky” and explained: “I think we found the right way in the vote.” But he also stresses that the field is “a lot closer together”.

“And the tire production, the wear, is also lower than in Bahrain. I think Ferrari hasn’t fully cranked the engine up yet,” Marco muses and explains that you don’t have half a second left in your rear hand.

“No, we don’t have. It will certainly be closer, but I hope it will be enough,” Marco said.

Russell: I won’t find a second overnight

Hamilton’s teammate is also not very optimistic about the weekend in Jeddah. “Red Bull is definitely ahead,” said Russell, even if of course you don’t know who was on the road with that power.

He certainly doesn’t see a chance of winning. “We won’t find a second moment overnight,” he explains. It is simply about getting the most out of the package and optimizing your setup.

He reveals some test bits on the car in FT2, but also makes it clear that these are just “little things”. In order to improve the car in the long run, you need significantly more time.

Hamilton: Problems in both sessions

The record holder after P11 in FT2 reported that it was the same game as in Bahrain. He is about a second behind the leader. “I definitely struggled in session. I struggled in both sessions,” he explains.

So now it’s about improving balance,” um [das Auto] Make it easier to drive,” says Hamilton, who confirms: “It’s just a tough car to drive. But I know everyone in the factory works hard.”

“So it’s only a matter of time, we just have to be patient,” he said combatively. Even if the W14 is not currently better to drive than the W13 …

Alonso: Friday means nothing

Will the Spaniard also be the first Red Bull player to qualify tomorrow? He himself limits expectations and clarifies: “Friday is not very representative. In Bahrain we were P1 on Friday, and in qualifying we were almost P5, P6.”

So you can’t make serious predictions until you qualify. “The balance is still not perfect,” he admits. However, as in Bahrain, it was a “good start” for Aston Martin.

However, he has no “idea” of where you stand compared to other teams. “I just drive and then in qualifying I see where I am,” he explains pragmatically.

Verstappen: It won’t be as clear as in Bahrain

“We had a positive day,” summed up the world champion after his best time. “But there are still some things we can do better,” he said. In general, the field is closer together than it is in Bahrain.

“It’s more about the handling of the tyres. You can’t push here at the moment and I think the lap times are very close on a track with low tire wear,” he predicts.

Conclusion: “So it’s definitely not like Bahrain.” More tension up front would of course be desirable for us!

The scene between Sainz and Perez…

…available here again in the video. I have a feeling it’s only a matter of time before things get worse here…

Chandhok: Ferrari hasn’t shown it all yet

Expert Karun Chandhok explains to ‘Sky’: “I think Ferrari has fallen behind.” He suspects that recent reliability problems have prevented today’s engines from getting even faster.

So he expects the Reds to be able to fight for pole position tomorrow – just like Fernando Alonso. What about George Russell and Lewis Hamilton? “It’s really hard to read Mercedes,” Chandhok said.

Because while Russell just finished fifth, he ended up outside the top ten in FT2, so what is closer to Mercedes’ real speed…?

Wolff: We still have five races max

Sensational statement from Toto Wolff on Sky. There the Mercedes team boss explains: “Now we’re ahead of the second race […]. Writing off the racing season early is definitely wrong.”

“But the deficit is huge at the moment and if we don’t achieve it [die Lücke] In the next four or five races, the world championship train also left, ”explains Wolff.

This means: If Mercedes does not have a winning car at Imola at the latest, you can probably stop the 2023 season.