During the first long runs with the new cars designed for the 2022 regulations, all the teams experienced the problem that the entire paddock talks about, the famous porpoising .
This effect causes cars to bounce off the ground at top speed on the straights, and was quite uncomfortable for the drivers, who saw their machines damage the ground. For this reason, they had to spend more time than necessary adjusting the floor and not notice such a setback.
One of the clearest examples occurred with Charles Leclerc, of whom a video was circulated in which the Ferrari bounced non-stop along the entire main straight of the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya .
Others like George Russell, Mercedes driver and director of the GPDA (Drivers Association), said that porpoising could become a safety problem, and that the return of the active suspension would solve this completely.
Alfa Romeo was another of the most affected teams at the start of the pre-season in Barcelona, and its drivers, Valtteri Bottas and Guanyu Zhou expressed their opinion on the event that affects the entire grid.
“It seems like it’s a challenge for all the teams,” the Finn commented. “For now, I don’t think it’s a safety issue, it’s the way the aerodynamics of the car work, and it’s a fact that the lower you go, the more downforce you have.
“If you find a way to maintain a balance, being able to go low, you will be able to gain some performance,” Bottas explained. “But in some places, especially at high speed over bumps, it’s hard to drive, so it’s interesting, a new philosophy on the aero side. I don’t think it’s going to be a big concern.”
The former Mercedes driver completed the fewest number of laps on the 2022 grid in testing due to various reliability problems with his C42 , in addition to one caused by porpoising.
“As a team, we have to work on it, and we have to make sure that the car is reliable for this regulation. It’s the same for all the teams,” said Bottas.
“I think now it’s a great topic of conversation, but I imagine that as the season goes on, the teams will understand it more and more and it will be less of an issue,” explained the 2019 and 2020 world runner-up.
For his part, rookie Zhou highlighted a “good improvement” by Alfa Romeo between the first and second days of testing as they tried to resolve the mishap that, as he admitted, “caught them by surprise”.
“The problem is still there for everyone, and it seems to be the biggest limitation it puts on us. We just have to find a way around it that gives us as much downforce as possible to reduce bounce on the straights,” said the Chinese.
“Safety-wise, there shouldn’t be any concern on that side,” the new driver from Hinwil concluded.
