Aston Martin’s performance in Brazil, with Fernando Alonso’s third
place supported by Lance Stroll’s run to fifth, surprised the
Formula 1 paddock. The AMR23 fell into limbo for several races
immediately after the Canadian GP and it seemed that it was not
destined to emerge despite the developments introduced during the
season. In Austin, a large aerodynamic package was introduced to
the floor, the beam wing and the front bargeboards, all clearly
inspired by Red Bull – but it had no positive effect. At the
Circuit of the Americas, a bumpy track, the team had effectively
used the entire weekend as a test to validate the modification
package. The situation didn’t evolve positively in Mexico too,
partially due to the track characteristics in terms of low
downforce generated due to the high altitude. Interlagos swing for
Aston Martin But the change in characteristics at the Interlagos
track allowed the team to precisely hit the ideal set-up right from
FP1, including in terms of ride height. The performance itself of
the AMR23 should not be considered important, rather the fact that
the engineers of the Silverstone-based team managed to find a
precise correlation between the simulator and the track,
demonstrating that the direction taken in the last development
package was not wrong. The biggest problem that the engineers,
directed by Dan Fallows, encountered was not completely resolving
and identifying the problems that had prevented the AMR23 from
being competitive throughout the season. In essence, if there had
not been a demonstration of improvement in the performance and
behaviour of the car in the last races, this would have represented
the worst-case scenario for the team with a view to 2024. However,
it is equally correct to consider that the limits of the car could
have been hidden precisely by the type of Interlagos track which
already on paper was favourable to the F1 cars with a high-medium
downforce configuration, such as the AMR23. The positive fact
that’s worth considering is that Aston Martin’s engineers have
understood what mistakes not to make in identifying the basic
concept of the next year’s car.
Source: Read More