A tenth of a second is an eternity in Formula 1. In qualifying runs, it can mean the difference between the pole position and third place or even worse at the starting grid. During a pit stop, it can make or break your entire race.
Moreover, if you multiply that tenth by 50 times or more, i.e. the number of laps in a Grand Prix, it is the difference between spraying the champagne on the podium and heading to the pits with your head down in disappointment.
That valuable split-second is what hundreds of people strive for months each year. Shortly after the new season starts, the designers back at the factory start working on next year’s car.
There is one period, however, when tenths of a second don’t matter – the first public tests before the beginning of each season. That’s when the teams and their drivers see how the new cars are like in the real world and how all the hours spent in the wind tunnel and in front of computer screens translate on the track.
Why don’t lap times matter during this phase, we hear you ask? The answer is twofold: a) because teams are still testing various components of their cars and settings and b) most of the times, they will go to great lengths not to reveal the actual advantages, or disadvantages, of their F1 racers.
In contrast, many back markers in their effort to attract sponsors, do their best to post a fast lap time and make headlines. And this despite the fact that it usually means the driver has to enter the pits soon after because the engine or some other part may disintegrate and wouldn’t last another lap, never mind a whole race, or the fuel tank has nothing but fumes in it.
Therefore, the lap times posted during 2012’s first official test that took place at Jerez, Spain during February 7-10 are pretty much useless to the public.
For example, on the fourth day, Lewis Hamilton posted the fourth quickest time, with 1:19.640, just beating Romain Grosjean and his Lotus (1:19.729). Does anyone really believe that in 2012, Lotus will ever come close to matching McLaren’s pace?
Driver or team statements are also to be taken with a grain of salt. Everyone is “happy about the new car” which “is a step forward compared to last year”. And let’s not forget that the first test was, undoubtedly, “positive” and “productive” for all but “there’s always room for improvement”.
The day that a driver or team manager says “our new car is rubbish” or “there’s no chance of battling for the championship – we’ll be real lucky if we don’t end up at the bottom of the standings” after the first test will the day the sun will rise from the west…
So why do it? Simply put, the teams have all the telemetry readings that show them exactly how the car is behaving during a lap. They try many different settings and they have long debriefing sessions with their drivers.
You would have better chances obtaining the codes for launching a nuclear attack than the data F1 teams collect after their cars turn their wheels in anger for the very first time.
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