F1 Test | Sauber, Bottas confirms: “Correspondence between the simulator and the track”

F1 tests – Official debut for the Clean who, after the adventure with Alfa Romeo, changes appearance and is colored phosphorescent green, and not just for the flow-viz (the green paint used during tests on the cars). Valtteri Bottas e Zhou Guangyu inaugurate the era of Kick Sauber, completing with the C44 one hundred and thirty-two laps. Problem-free session for both drivers, pleasantly surprised by the innovations brought to the track by the team Hinwil, a clear step forward compared to 2023.

Bottas: “Correspondence between the data on the simulator and that on the track”

The Finn took to the track first, completing sixty-three laps and finishing with the fourteenth best time. Numbers aside, Valtteri seems more than satisfied with the C44, a clear evolution of the previous one from Alfa Romeo.

“It was a productive first morning, I'm very happy to be back on track. It seems like we have made some improvements compared to last year and there is already a good feeling with the new car. Furthermore, the correspondence between the simulator data and the track data is reassuring, especially after just one day. We have a good starting base and we managed to clock up several kilometres. Now our attention is all on the details, we want to understand everything about the car these days. These results seem promising, but everything will really only be seen next week."

Zhou: “Clear step forward compared to last year”

Excellent sensations also for Zhou Guanyu: sixty-nine laps for him and tenth best time. On the second day of testing he will take to the track first, and then leave the wheel to his teammate.

“Today was a promising day: we managed to complete our program, we focused on the race pace and the transition between different set-ups. Our car seems to be going in the right direction, but even if there is still a lot of room for improvement, the feeling is more than positive. The aggressive approach adopted this winter has allowed us to take a step forward compared to last year's car, and you can feel the difference on the track, it's great. Now, for the next two days, it will be important to complete all our objectives to be ready for next week. It's early to judge our opponents, obviously everyone is following their own program: we continue to focus on ourselves, trying to cover as many kilometers as possible."