Valtteri Bottas and Guanyu Zhou explain the reasons for Sauber’s miserable Formula 1 weekend in Zandvoort – Are the latest updates a failure?
The Sauber Formula 1 team is no longer getting anywhere. After 15 races of the season, they are still without a point in 2024, although there were still some opportunities at the beginning of the year, but they were unable to take advantage of them due to weak pit stops. For some races now, the C44 has been so slow that they can’t even get within points range
The Dutch Grand Prix in Zandvoort is probably the low point of the season. Only the two Sauber drivers Valtteri Bottas and Guanyu Zhou were lapped twice, resulting in 19th and 20th place. They were two seconds per lap off the lead and three tenths off the next fastest car.
“I think Zandvoort was probably the low point for us,” said Bottas, who turned 35 this week. “I don’t think we’ve had a race with that kind of performance. And we didn’t really have anything new for the race. So we know the performance can be better. “
Zhou: Zandvoort has shown all the weaknesses
One might have assumed that the track in Zandvoort would actually suit the car. For the past two years, Sauber has normally performed best on circuits that have a lot of medium-fast corners and shorter straights, such as Hungary, Qatar and Zandvoort. However, the cold outside temperatures and strong winds have put paid to that.
“It’s quite track-specific and also depends on the conditions,” says Bottas. “That’s why I’m a bit more optimistic for this race [in Monza]. But no miracles are going to happen. It’s still not going to be an easy weekend, but I think we should be in a better position.”
“But it’s all about the aerodynamics. I think Zandvoort highlighted the problems we have. We are too sensitive to crosswinds and tailwinds and things like that. In corners with banking and in windy conditions, we lost quite a lot from an aerodynamic point of view. “
Teammate Guanyu Zhou adds: “It just showed all the limitations we have with this package at the moment, especially in terms of aerodynamics. It reacts very sensitively to the wind and the roughness of the asphalt and is also quite unpredictable when driving. “
Updates before summer break no progress?
After Sauber had kept a low profile with updates at the start of the season, major changes were made to the car before the summer break in Hungary and Belgium. However, performance has not really improved since then, which will worry the team. According to Bottas, there are still the same problems as before.
“We’ve been struggling with ride height, roll and wind all season. The smoother the asphalt surface, the better. If we can drive the car with the optimum set-up, and here [at Monza] when it’s smoother, then that’s better for us. In the coming races we will have some upgrades that will help us. We know in which direction the development has to go.”
“But there will be no miracles. At the moment, we need luck to finish in the points. In terms of pace, it’s not enough for the top ten, that’s the fact at the moment. “
Further progress slowed by pit stop problems?
Looking deeper into the data, the weaknesses of the C44 are clear to see. According to the data from our technology partner PACETEQ, no other team has such high average tire wear this season as Sauber. In addition, no team is slower on the straights in race trim, if you exclude DRS laps. That speaks for too much drag, with too little downforce in the corners
While the Swiss team has brought in many updates to improve the efficiency of the car, no significant improvement can be seen here either. “We haven’t found enough big steps,” says Bottas. “Of course, this is largely due to the development in the factory. Some other teams have made bigger steps.”
“I think Alpine was a good example. At the beginning of the year we were ahead of them, but now they are clearly ahead. We just didn’t find enough lap time. I think the base car we started the season with wasn’t that far off. But from the beginning until now, we just haven’t made any big steps. That is ultimately the biggest problem.”
The Finn suspects that his team may have been too busy solving the pit stop problems, which was at the expense of further development: “At the beginning of the year, a lot of resources were put into improving the pit stops. And of course we don’t have as many people as the big teams. So if we have problems, it will always take up some of the team’s resources. But the pit stops in Zandvoort were good, so that’s a plus. “
Zhou realistic: “We’re missing half a second ”
The next three races in Monza, Baku and Singapore will shed more light on whether Sauber can strike back in 2024. Although the asphalt surface is slippery at all three tracks, top speed will be crucial at Monza and Baku in particular, where Sauber will struggle.
Zhou therefore has no false hopes for the rest of the year: “It doesn’t matter what we try to do with the set-up, because basically we are missing about half a second and we can maybe find a tenth, that’s it. But I don’t think the team’s attitude is bad, we’re still highly motivated because we want to be here, we want to show that everyone is improving and that’s the key. “