Sergio Pérez got the first pole position of his racing career in Formula 1 after 215 attempts, beating Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari in a “surprising” way, as he himself said after qualifying, by just 25 thousandths.
The Mexican, with his Red Bull, set a higher top speed, while those from Maranello focused on adjusting their car to maximize downforce. That is why it is interesting to see the comparison between the two laps with totally different cars, a faster RB18 on the straights and an F1-75 that takes time in the acceleration sections and the curves, although the Jeddah track does not have many slow turns.
Telemetry data provided by F1 Tempo (in the post at the end of the article) has been used to overlay Perez and Leclerc’s best times in the standings.
The first image shows who was fastest in each section of the track, while the photograph below indicates the corresponding telemetry, where you can see that the blue line , that of Checo Pérez, has the highest top speed on the straights.
This confirms that Red Bull has opted for a full speed setup, however, Leclerc’s graph shows that the line is somewhat higher, meaning that it makes up ground in the corners.
Almost 80% of the Jeddah track image is blue, so it’s no wonder the RB18 is fast in Saudi Arabia, after all, most of the time is spent on the throttle thoroughly. Leclerc manages to gain time in the sections where he has to brake more intensely, especially in sector 1 , and it is curious that with very little percentage ahead in the lap, he achieves an almost identical time.
That Ferrari can do this is a luxury in itself, as last season the Italians were forced to adopt a lower downforce setup to make up for their loss on the straights.
Which is better for the F1 Saudi Arabian GP 2022 race?
The differences have to do with the philosophies of the two cars as, for example, Ferrari, as in Bahrain, has chosen to have more downforce than Red Bull. Both approaches have their strengths and weaknesses, but which is the best?
The Italian team has opted to give the drivers a little more comfort in the first sector, where the lanes are somewhat slower, within how fast this urban track continues to be, which gives more traction at the exit of the curves. and less tire wear. The latter proved to be a determining factor at Sakhir, and Ferrari hopes that this decision will be favorable at the end of Sunday’s race, having less degradation than Red Bull.
The Austrian team, on the other hand, has opted for speed on the straights , a crucial factor in the race, since it is easier to overtake. However, Sergio Pérez said after qualifying that they had given up part of their speed to be good on Sunday.
This means that, with more downforce, they could have been better over one lap, but the energy drinkers consciously did this. After all, Jeddah’s long straights allow for wheel-to-wheel battles, and top speed can be used to attack as well as defend.
It has been a difficult choice for Red Bull and Ferrari, but it will be necessary to wait until completing the 50 laps that make up the 2022 Saudi Arabian F1 Grand Prix to meet the team that has got its configuration right.
