Max Verstappen’s best lap on the first day of pre-season testing around Bahrain’s Sakhir circuit was not only 1.1 seconds faster than anyone else, but also around 1.5 seconds faster than the equivalent session last year.
In other words, Red Bull’s on-track preparations for the new season are progressing smoothly.
Read more: Russell reviews first day of testing, calls new Mercedes ‘easier to drive’ than previous car
The Red Bull RB20 was understandably the center of attention even before it hit the track, as the world champion team made significant and unexpected updates to the most successful F1 car of all time. As the car was exposed to the gaze of rivals and the lenses of photographers, the secrets of its bodywork were gradually revealed.
A narrow horizontal letterbox slit below the top of the sidepod forms part of the radiator inlet area, adding to the vertical slot below and the extension of the ‘rabbit ears’ around the rear of the cockpit. The small sidepods and its huge undercut are exactly the same as shown at the car’s presentation.
In fact, it turned out better than it seemed. Verstappen, who had been in the car all day, covered more than two races’ distance without any mechanical problems.
There were a few wacky moments early in the morning on a dusty track with hard compound tires, but as soon as the car was on the grippier surface with C3 compound (allocated to soft on race weekends) It looked beautifully balanced.
Over some of the bumps on the circuit, it performed more calmly than its rivals. The combination of balance and stable mechanical platform suggests it should be very tire-friendly, but the team did not undertake any significant long runs on this first of three days.
Read more: Verstappen remains top in Bahrain after first day of pre-season testing
However, Verstappen’s 1.1 second difference (versus Lando Norris’ McLaren and Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari) was a significant difference, considering that Ferrari, McLaren and Mercedes did not have as many fuel-efficient performance runs as Verstappen, who recorded five fuel-efficient performance runs. I’m probably exaggerating the real advantage. 2am and 3pm – when the trucks went much faster.
His first attack lap of the morning was around 0.3 seconds faster than Fernando Alonso’s Aston Martin had just lapped, despite the Monaco Alonso setting the time on a flying third lap after locking up. It was only about 0.2 seconds faster than Charles Leclerc’s subsequent Ferrari. His first time.
2024 F1 Pre-Season Test: Day 1 Highlights
Comparing Leclerc’s lap to Verstappen’s best lap at that point in the lap, the performance profiles of the two cars are quite different, with the Ferrari (at that stage of their respective programs) going into the slow corner; Through it all there was a clear advantage. The Red Bull was much faster on the high-speed downhills after Turn 4. Straight line performance is very similar.
George Russell’s low ranking in the headline figures is unrepresentative, as Mercedes focused more than anyone else on long distance runs and did not run seriously low on fuel. Lando Norris took over the McLaren from Oscar Piastri in the afternoon and fell short of Verstappen’s morning benchmark on his second (and final) low-fuel run, but Red Bull beat that time on the next three runs.
WATCH: Watch the 2024 car hit the track in Bahrain for pre-season testing.
“I’m happy to be back in an F1 car again and I had fun on track today,” Verstappen said after the match. “We did a lot of laps and tried quite a lot with the car, which was important, so overall I’m happy with the result. After the winter break, the first few laps are always a little surprising. But we’ll get back into the swing of things soon.
“Overall the car responded well and we had a good day considering it was just a test. We are currently discussing with the engineers what our plans are for tomorrow. , I’m looking forward to getting in the car this afternoon.”
Sergio Perez will take over the car tomorrow morning, with Verstappen returning to the seat in the afternoon. As everyone goes through different programs, the true picture will become more apparent. But at least we already know that Red Bull is competitive.
Head of trackside engineering Giampiero Lambiase seemed very pleased with the progress, saying: “We came to Bahrain with some unknowns with a relatively new car, but on the first day we We tested most of the parts and got the answers we needed. This gave us a solid foundation for days two and three.”
Photo: All 2024 F1 cars on track during pre-season testing in Bahrain