Many changes made by the teams in Hungary
With the summer break just around the corner, many teams are taking advantage of the Hungarian Grand Prix to make further improvements to their single-seaters and, with it, a little more performance.
This weekend at the Hungaroring is marked by numerous technical improvements made by several teams, following the British Grand Prix two weeks ago. Here is an overview of the introduced changes.
Revanchist Red Bulls to regain top spot.
After the first five Grand Prix of the season where Verstappen won the races hands down, no one probably imagined experiencing such a sudden turn of events. Indeed, the Austrian team is now being shaken up at the front of the grid by the McLarens and now the Mercedes. Not exactly an idyllic situation that forces the team to accelerate its evolution schedule. Originally planned for this weekend, the new floor has been introduced as early as the Silverstone race.
Pierre Waché, technical director of the Austrian team, explains: « The idea is to seek more pure performance. We are not trying to solve any particular problem or anything else, we are simply looking to increase the performance of the car everywhere.
Ferrari hopes to make a comeback.
Another team at the top of the grid brought some developments: Ferrari. The Italian team is going through a tough period, relegated to the position of the fourth force on the grid and is trailing by 4/10 in both qualifying and race compared to Red Bull, McLaren, and Mercedes, preventing them from fighting on equal terms for victories, or even podiums.
An intolerable situation for such a historic team that hopes to bounce back this weekend at the Hungaroring. To do so, the Maranello team is bringing the floor from Barcelona, the one that was causing porpoising and stability issues in fast corners. Team principal Frédéric Vasseur was keen to reassure Ferrari fans by explaining that many modifications have been made to address these issues.
« We have noticed that our latest evolution package has brought the expected advantages in terms of aerodynamic points. However, it also had some side effects that made the car more difficult to drive. We have worked hard at the factory and, in Budapest, we are bringing an evolution of the floor which, we believe, will give the drivers a car that will allow them to drive to the best of their abilities. I am convinced that the package we are bringing to the Hungaroring will allow us to be at the front. » An optimism that may initiate a battle of four for victory this Sunday.
Aston Martin wants to regain the front positions.
« The team needs to speak less and perform more »: such were the words spoken by Fernando Alonso after the Spanish Grand Prix. Strong words that need to be implemented in a team that is not living up to its ambitions. After a promising 2023 season, 2024 is not confirming its potential. Despite a good weekend at Silverstone, the team is far from the podium positions and sometimes struggles to score points.
A tense context for the British team which is bringing many improvements eagerly awaited by the drivers this weekend. However, Tom McCullough, the performance director of Aston Martin F1, wanted to temper the potential jubilations of seeing Aston Martin fighting for the podium again: « The evolutions of the Hungaroring, it’s a reasonable change in the philosophy of the car, but with all these things, it’s relative, it’s relatively small.”
« The car will not move from where it is currently located to the front of the grid, it is rather a matter of whether it is going in the right direction – to solve the problems we are facing and to what extent, we will see. » Beware of a potential underperformance that would push the Silverstone team into a crisis.
Clean: developments to earn a point?
She is the only team on the grid that has not scored any points this year. The Swiss team must find solutions and prepare for the future with Audi. What better than to make improvements starting from Hungary, in response to Bottas’ request, alarmed by the performance of his car and who believes that the team urgently needs performance.
« We have new parts in the car this weekend and we hope it will make us perform better because the triple race was difficult. This is what we need. » Positive words from the Finn who hopes that these developments will allow him to reach Q3 on a circuit that suits the Sauber well, both drivers having been in the final qualifying session last year on this track.
« It was good last year, we hope for a good race for us this weekend too. It’s a good Grand Prix, I love coming here, there are a lot of Finns and it’s cool.
Many teams are bringing new elements to their car in Hungary, hoping to improve performance and provide an even fiercer competition.
