F1
We’re in the desert in the early winter and temperatures are projected to be chilly. What could go wrong? Here are the cold, hard facts.
Formula One doesn’t do winter. Since forever its calendar has been designed to chase the sun, avoiding the rain and cold of early spring in its European heartland by escaping to warmer climes in the Middle East and Australia, before returning for summer in Europe and finally autumnal jaunts to the Far East and the Americas, where the fall is warmer. So, Vegas, at night, in November could be a bit bleak.
How bleak? Well, F1 teams love to catastrophise, so doomsaying engineers have been vocal in their assertion that disaster awaits. Not surprisingly, the FIA disagrees, saying that no special measures are scheduled and predicting that temperatures will be similar to those encountered at Belgium’s Spa-Francorchamps in late July.
So who’s right? As these disputes usually go, the answer probably lies somewhere in between. But setting aside the polemics, here are a few ways that lower temperatures will likely make their presence felt.
01
Tyres
F1 tyres hate the cold and F1 drivers hate the lack of grip from cold tyres even more. To combat this, teams will use tyre blankets to get the rubber up to working temperature, with tyres heated to a maximum of 70˚C for two hours before being fitted.
To help with grip once those tyres are onboard and cooling, tyre supplier Pirelli is bringing the softest tyres in its range, the C3 to C5 compounds. But still, the tyremaker’s motorsport chief, Mario Isola, admits that Vegas will be a step into the unknown.
“We asked the teams for simulations in advance to try to understand how much energy the layout of the track puts on tyres,” Isola says. “We’ve also had information from the companies that made the tarmac in order to understand how abrasive it is, and what is the level of grip we can expect. But it’s a big unknown. Fast track, long straights, high speed and conditions that are quite difficult to manage.”
Ayao Komatsu, director of engineering at Haas, agrees that they’re entering new territory. “In terms of preparation, you’ve got to put your best estimate on the table, depending on how the tyres are reacting,” he says. “It’s not only the temperature of the track surface; it’s the general overall grip level as well. So for us, it’s just doing enough homework, then being ready with options.”
One particular concern for racing here in Vegas will be a Safety Car period. Without as much speed or energy going through the tyres during laps behind the slower safety car, tyre temperatures will drop and grip will disappear. So restarts from behind the SC could be messy.
The temperature is one to prepare for, both in terms of a driver’s hands and car set-up
02
Brake ducts
As temps dip into colder realms, teams are also likely to turn their attention to brake ducts. Why? Because normally heat is the enemy with brakes, as high temperatures can impair brake function, and, if that heat is transferred to what’s around the brakes, it can also compromise tyre performance.
However, in wintry Vegas, that heat is going to be valuable. So expect to see teams running with the smallest brake ducts in their possession to maintain brake heat, transfer heat to the wheel rims and then to the tyres.
03
Brakes
What do the lower temperatures mean for brakes, then? Like tyres, brakes generally have a Goldilocks temperature window, in which everything works nicely. Too hot (they can peak at over 1,800˚C) and you get what’s called fade, where there’s not enough friction between pad and disc and thus ineffective braking. Too cold and they don’t bite as hard.
Aside from using smaller ducts to reduce the cooling of brakes, we’re also likely to see drivers throw brake balance forward on the formation lap and do more burnouts on the way to the grid in a bid to get some heat into their brakes. But if the fronts are much warmer than the rears, it can result in braking instability and for a driver that’s uncomfortable and unpredictable, as it’s easy to lock the fronts.
Relive an epic night with Sergio Pérez as he takes the RB7 from the Las Vegas Strip to the Nevada desert. Watch the video below.
04
Wings
In cold temperatures, an aerodynamicist can be a tyre engineer’s best friend. More downforce means more load on the tyres, which then means more heat is generated, as the under-pressure tyre moves around on the surface. As such, throwing more rear wing at a car can help to cure cold tyres.
There’s only one problem: Vegas is a high-speed circuit with some long straights, and that means a low downforce configuration will be preferred. Balancing increased wing for grip in the cold conditions against a slimmer wing for outright speed on the straights will be a key consideration.
05
Hand warmers
Yes, you're reading that correctly, some drivers might actually wear mittens. McLaren’s Lando Norris is thinking about it. “The temperature is one to prepare for, both in terms of a driver’s hands and car set-up,” says the British driver. “You need your hands to work well when you’re driving, so being on top of all of that is something we’re already looking into. Just simple things, with hand warmers and gloves and whatever.”
Haas driver Nico Hülkenberg agrees, recalling “frozen fingers” at previous pre-season tests in Barcelona, which often meant drivers “couldn’t open the fingers” after a short time behind the wheel. So, while at nighttime street races, such as the Singapore Grand Prix, drivers are concerned about the effects of extremely high cockpit temperatures, in Vegas they’re worried they might need electric blankets!
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