Ferrari and Red Bull have earned the role of favorites after the first two Grands Prix of the season. With the new technical rules for 2022, they seem to have done the best possible job of breaking the dominance that Mercedes had been in since 2014.
But the situation with this regulation seems that it will be different, since the progress will be very big and continuous. However, both teams have some features in their cars that ensure they remain highly competitive in the medium and short term.
Its potential is located above all in the nose. Taking into account the new cost limit, the two teams have opted to be very flexible in this area. In fact, the modular nose of the Ferrari F1-75 caused quite a stir from the outset.
Most of the Formula 1 fronts in 2022 are different in terms of what they look like on the outside and what they hide inside. In all or almost all cases, a cover covers the underlying crash structure and at Ferrari it is no different.
As you can see in the image above, the shock structure (black) is much shorter than the nose itself. This means that this “excess” part could also be easily removed if Ferrari finds a more aerodynamic solution at other tracks.
Most teams, with the exception of the Italian team, do not connect the nose to the front wing base plate, only reaching the second element (flap) of the front wing.
Those from Maranello could easily change their nose and bet on that solution too, because the structure of their nose allows it without having to make a completely new and expensive one. This obviously gives Ferrari a development advantage, as with the new budget cap, teams cannot make continuous updates as they previously did.
The ventilation opening for the cabin also has a very interesting detail. From the outside, said air inlet has a triangular appearance. However, if you look below the surface, a more rectangular opening can be seen. In this element, Ferrari has also left a margin of maneuver to be able to introduce changes at low cost if necessary.
Red Bull RB18: same flexibility with a different solution in F1 2022
Red Bull goes the opposite way: the nose only goes as far as the second wing element and can therefore be as short as Ferrari’s. But on the other hand, it can also be easily extended to the front of the wing if Adrien Newey ‘s design team so wishes.
Also at Red Bull, the cockpit vent located in the crash structure is shaped differently than meets the eye. Also, it has some bumps that are also not visible from the outside with the cover on.
Again like Ferrari , if Red Bull finds aerodynamic improvements in this area, upgrades can be introduced without much cost.
Additional co-authors: Matt Somerfield. With images by Giorgio Piola.
