McLaren will “definitely” do a shakedown ahead of Barcelona test, first driver still to be announced – Key explains 2022 challenges
Lance Stroll was allowed to do his first test kilometres with the new generation Formula One car on Friday as Aston Martin became the first team to complete a shakedown at Silverstone. McLaren is also planning such a shakedown before the joint tests in Barcelona in order to be as well prepared as possible for the tests.
But it is not yet clear when the shakedown will take place, nor who will have the honour of sitting in the car first. According to team boss Andreas Seidl, McLaren will probably hold the shakedown shortly before the start of the tests in Barcelona.
In order to have everything prepared as best as possible for this outing, which is declared as a film day, McLaren had also chosen a relatively early launch time for the MCL36. “That was the schedule we thought was best for us as a team,” says Seidl. “There are still some challenges to have everything ready for film day. “
Because the team knows how important testing will be before the new season. Each team only has six days at their disposal, which they naturally want to make the best possible use of. And that this can quickly go wrong with a new car, as McLaren had to learn painfully at the beginning of the partnership with Honda a few years ago.
Much conjecture, no hard data
Technical director James Key knows how testing a new car differs from testing a more advanced model. Of course, there are normal test programmes that are the same every year.
The car is checked to see if everything is running as expected, and there are long runs and short runs to understand the tyres and see how the car reacts to different amounts of fuel. And of course, as usual, it’s all about reliability – this time under the new auspices of the heavier cars and stiffer suspension.
What is new, however, is that the teams are putting more focus on the issue of correlation. “We don’t know how well the cars have been modelled. That’s a question all teams face,” says Key. “It may be close, but it may be bad and the wind tunnel or the CFD or the tyre models may not be as representative. “
Because, “There’s a lot of conjecture and maths behind the car, but no real hard data. “
Ricciardo: Driving on instinct at the start
There are also some changes coming for the drivers themselves – perhaps not in the way they work, but in the way they drive. “Technically and driving-wise, you have to approach it with an open mind. The cars are going to be very different, maybe like I’ve never experienced before,” said Ricciardo.
The Australian therefore wants to follow his instincts above all else in the beginning: “In the first laps I will drive the way I think the car needs to be driven. After those ten laps, the experimentation starts,” he says. “You want to see what the car can do, how it reacts.”
And that makes testing a bit more exciting for the Australian this year: “Testing is fun, but actually you want to race. When there are challenges waiting for us in testing, it keeps you fresh. “
