Formula 1, Monza: top speed lower than expected?

The alarm came from Nick Chester and his colleague Andy Green. According to the technical directors of Lotus and Force India respectively, in Monza, which has always been the temple of speed, the top speeds of the Formula 1 single-seaters could prove lower than expected. The Italian Grand Prix, which takes place on one of the fastest tracks in the world, has a particular layout that requires a very low aerodynamic set-up. During the last edition of the Italian race the speed record was set by the Sauber driver, Esteban Gutierrez who reached 341,1 kilometers per hour. Although a comparison between the 2013 and 2014 season, published by colleagues at Auto Motor und Sport, reports that the cars proved to be around 20/30 kilometers per hour faster in a straight line than those powered by V8s, in Monza it could do not be like that.

Again as reported by the German magazine, according to the simulations carried out on the Brianza track by the different teams in anticipation of the Italian GP, ​​the final results speak of maximums that are around 350/355 kilometers per hour, which can reach a maximum of 360 in wake or with DRS in on mode. The word also came from the words of Lotus Technical Director, Nick Chester, an alarm also confirmed by Andy Green of Force India: "According to the new regulations, downforce and resistance to progress have been reduced by approximately 10%, a figure that refers to the circuits where we race with the maximum downforce while in Monza we would be dealing with cars that, in the past, had been set up to run with the minimum degree of aerodynamic load. The difference will be really minimal“, confirmed Green.

Eleonora Ottonello