McLaren chief technology officer James Key has explained why the situation before the Formula 1 season 2022 is reminiscent of 2009.
The rule changes for the 2009 Formula 1 season completely overturned the pecking order in the premier class. McLaren and Ferrari, who had previously dominated the world championship, finished the world championship that year only in third and fourth place behind Brawn and Red Bull, who made a huge leap forward.
McLaren chief technology officer James Key explains that the starting position before the 2022 season is at least similar. “Technically, we have fewer resources to play with. But it typically generates a lot of ideas that the [2021er-]Cars didn’t even think about it, “said Key.
Because of the much more restrictive rules for 2022, areas were looked at in which the teams had not yet paid off to think about major developments. “In times like this you get pretty innovative. It happened in 2009,” explains Key, who was then working for Force India.
“They all realized that there are a lot of things that can be done. It was just a little more subtle and complicated,” he says, looking back on the great 2009 amendment and explains: “The situation will be similar in 2022. I think “We’re going to see some differences and some ideas on different cars.”
Not a new double diffuser, but …
In other words: Key does not share the fears of some fans that the new cars will all look the same because of the restrictive regulations. It will be “interesting” what ideas the different teams came up with. “I think the development rates will probably be pretty high,” predicts Key.
“Everyone has to learn about the 2022 cars first. We have to compare them on the track. We have to see what everyone [anderen] “, explains Key, who therefore believes that there will be major leaps in development, especially in the first half of the 2022 season. In addition,” there could be some real ‘game changers’. “
In 2009 it was Brawn’s double diffuser, which was a key element in winning the title. However, Key recently made it clear: “With these rules we will not see a double diffuser and these kinds of great innovations. They are too restrictive for that. But there will be other clever ideas and approaches.”
The potential “game changers” will probably be found in smaller areas. “We have to see how we perform in comparison to others, and find out where the strengths and weaknesses lie in comparison. In that regard, we are all in the same boat,” recalls the McLaren chief technology officer.
Feld very closely together by 2023 at the latest?
Because currently nobody knows with absolute certainty how good their own car really is in relation to the other teams. Especially at the beginning of the 2022 season, the pecking order in Formula 1 could be “a little messed up”, Key predicts. 2009 Brawn was able to win six of the first seven races of the season.
In 2022, too, it cannot be ruled out that there will be a team that dominates at the beginning. However, Key believes that the performance of the cars will be much more balanced by 2023 at the latest, “because the teams will have identified certain trends by then.” That will inevitably make for a narrower field.
“We’ll have understood what works for us and what didn’t work quite as well as we had hoped,” he explains, adding: “It’s too early to say whether that will mean that the cars will look similar.” In terms of performance, however, there will no longer be any major differences in the second year of the new rules at the latest.
“I think the teams will definitely have a better idea when approaching the 2023 cars than they will with the 2022 cars,” said Key. In 2009, McLaren and Ferrari were able to win again in the second half of the season, and in 2010 both teams were able to fight for the title again.
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