US GP - RACE PACE 🏁
🟠 NOR was <0.1s/lap slower than VER on average; 🔵 VER was managing, yet NOR was stuck behind 🔴 LEC for long!
HAM was 0.18s/lap slower than LEC; PIA’s gap to NOR was over twice that!
Finally, a race where Ferrari could fight McL.
🟢 RUS won in Singapore’s heat, yet Merc was only 4th fastest in (hot) Austin.
Little pace from 🟡 Racing Bulls; none from 🟣 Alpine.
After the summer break, the quickest RBR (VER) has had a better race pace than the quickest McL.
VER has to recover 40 points in 5 weekends, or 8pts/weekend on average: hard but doable, considering his (and McL's, especially PIA's) current form!
🟠 NOR was <0.1s/lap slower than VER on average; 🔵 VER was managing, yet NOR was stuck behind 🔴 LEC for long!
HAM was 0.18s/lap slower than LEC; PIA’s gap to NOR was over twice that!
Finally, a race where Ferrari could fight McL.
🟢 RUS won in Singapore’s heat, yet Merc was only 4th fastest in (hot) Austin.
Little pace from 🟡 Racing Bulls; none from 🟣 Alpine.
After the summer break, the quickest RBR (VER) has had a better race pace than the quickest McL.
VER has to recover 40 points in 5 weekends, or 8pts/weekend on average: hard but doable, considering his (and McL's, especially PIA's) current form!
🔥15❤3👍1
Formula Data Analysis
US GP - RACE PACE 🏁 🟠 NOR was <0.1s/lap slower than VER on average; 🔵 VER was managing, yet NOR was stuck behind 🔴 LEC for long! HAM was 0.18s/lap slower than LEC; PIA’s gap to NOR was over twice that! Finally, a race where Ferrari could fight McL. 🟢 RUS…
Race pace last year, when Ferrari was quickest, clearly in front of McL and VER.
Mercedes struggled last year; this year's improvement was far from enough to fight for a podium.
Mercedes struggled last year; this year's improvement was far from enough to fight for a podium.
❤12🔥1
UNITED STATES GP - TOP SPEED PER LAP VS TOP SPEEDS IN QUALIFYING
💡In an F1 race, drag does not dictate which car reaches the highest top speed - the intensity of the slipstream does!
🟠NOR: LOWEST top speed in quali (highest drag), yet HIGHEST AVERAGE top speed in the race (stuck behind LEC!).
🟢 STR hit 342 km/h, +19 km/h vs quali, where he was only 12th in the speed traps!
💡In an F1 race, drag does not dictate which car reaches the highest top speed - the intensity of the slipstream does!
🟠NOR: LOWEST top speed in quali (highest drag), yet HIGHEST AVERAGE top speed in the race (stuck behind LEC!).
🟢 STR hit 342 km/h, +19 km/h vs quali, where he was only 12th in the speed traps!
🔥6❤3👍1
Formula Data Analysis
UNITED STATES GP - TOP SPEED PER LAP VS TOP SPEEDS IN QUALIFYING 💡In an F1 race, drag does not dictate which car reaches the highest top speed - the intensity of the slipstream does! 🟠NOR: LOWEST top speed in quali (highest drag), yet HIGHEST AVERAGE top…
Top speeds in quali, which are much better suited to assess which cars ran the most drag as the conditions (DRS + slipstream) are equivalent across the grid.
👍7❤3
MEXICO CITY GP | TYRES & TRACK PREVIEW
🇲🇽 Mexico’s 2285m altitude cuts air density by 20.7% vs sea level ➡️ analogous drop in downforce, drag, cooling, and engine air intake!
Keys to performance:
✅ Being able to bolt on downforce (efficiently if possible);
✅ Strong cooling capability;
✅ Large turbocharger, which can spin faster to burn the 100kg/h fuel flow.
Teams will run Monaco-like wings… yet reach speeds above Monza’s!
Compounds: C2 / C4 / C5.
McLaren’s main weakness (high drag) will matter less here!
🇲🇽 Mexico’s 2285m altitude cuts air density by 20.7% vs sea level ➡️ analogous drop in downforce, drag, cooling, and engine air intake!
Keys to performance:
✅ Being able to bolt on downforce (efficiently if possible);
✅ Strong cooling capability;
✅ Large turbocharger, which can spin faster to burn the 100kg/h fuel flow.
Teams will run Monaco-like wings… yet reach speeds above Monza’s!
Compounds: C2 / C4 / C5.
McLaren’s main weakness (high drag) will matter less here!
❤11🔥4👍1
MEXICO CITY GP - RACE | RACE PACE ANALYSIS
NOR was quickest… despite using one less tyre set than most! 😳
🟠 PIA lost 0.15s/lap despite pitting twice.
⚪️ BEA was 3rd fastest, but not quick enough
vs 🔵VER /🔴 LEC to offset the extra stop.
Soft-Medium
1) NOR quickest
2) VER +0.30s/lap
3) LEC +0.38
Soft-Medium-Soft
1) PIA +0.15s/lap vs NOR
2-3) BEA/HAM +0.19
4) ANT +0.23
5) RUS +0.30
Alpine slowest by far… no surprise!
NOR was quickest… despite using one less tyre set than most! 😳
🟠 PIA lost 0.15s/lap despite pitting twice.
⚪️ BEA was 3rd fastest, but not quick enough
vs 🔵VER /🔴 LEC to offset the extra stop.
Soft-Medium
1) NOR quickest
2) VER +0.30s/lap
3) LEC +0.38
Soft-Medium-Soft
1) PIA +0.15s/lap vs NOR
2-3) BEA/HAM +0.19
4) ANT +0.23
5) RUS +0.30
Alpine slowest by far… no surprise!
❤13👍2🔥1
Formula Data Analysis
MEXICO CITY GP - PRACTICE 2 | LONG RUNS Norris’ quali advantage looks to be confirmed in the race as well: he was quickest, the only top driver to use softs along with his teammate! Still, not quickest overall: BEA’s stint on Mediums was even quicker!
MEXICO CITY GP - RACE
MEXICO’S MOST COMPREHENSIVE PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS
⛽️Fuel-corrected laptimes vs 🛞tyre age
Mediums or softs, fresh or worn - it didn’t matter: NOR had a huge ~0.4s advantage all else being equal!
Only exception: end of the soft stint, when VER and SAI were quickest!
LEC was 2nd fastest on mediums, with excellent wear; his wear was instead severe on softs.
Answering this before it gets asked:
'Why did your race pace analysis show that BEA had better pace than LEC on average, yet this new graph shows that he was slower?'
Because BEA did one more stop than LEC: on equally-worn tyres, BEA was indeed slower. However, he had, ON AVERAGE, less-worn tyres, so he was quicker on average (still not enough to offset the extra stop)!
The same applies to the other one- vs two-stopper comparisons.
Made via @JMP_software
MEXICO’S MOST COMPREHENSIVE PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS
⛽️Fuel-corrected laptimes vs 🛞tyre age
Mediums or softs, fresh or worn - it didn’t matter: NOR had a huge ~0.4s advantage all else being equal!
Only exception: end of the soft stint, when VER and SAI were quickest!
LEC was 2nd fastest on mediums, with excellent wear; his wear was instead severe on softs.
Answering this before it gets asked:
'Why did your race pace analysis show that BEA had better pace than LEC on average, yet this new graph shows that he was slower?'
Because BEA did one more stop than LEC: on equally-worn tyres, BEA was indeed slower. However, he had, ON AVERAGE, less-worn tyres, so he was quicker on average (still not enough to offset the extra stop)!
The same applies to the other one- vs two-stopper comparisons.
Made via @JMP_software
❤7
MEXICO CITY GP - RACE | PIA vs BEA Pace
🟠 Piastri’s race was ruined by traffic: was P9 after a poor quali and bad start, and only ran in free air during parts of the last stint!
In my view, a one-stopper would have helped, letting him pass those ahead (all on two stops) as they pitted.
🟠 BEA had the 2nd-best pace in his final stint, behind only PIA (though NOR, LEC, and VER had much more worn tyres by then).
PIA's was indeed slower than NOR, but his potential pace was way closer than it looked like. 😉
🟠 Piastri’s race was ruined by traffic: was P9 after a poor quali and bad start, and only ran in free air during parts of the last stint!
In my view, a one-stopper would have helped, letting him pass those ahead (all on two stops) as they pitted.
🟠 BEA had the 2nd-best pace in his final stint, behind only PIA (though NOR, LEC, and VER had much more worn tyres by then).
PIA's was indeed slower than NOR, but his potential pace was way closer than it looked like. 😉
👍4❤2
MEXICO CITY GP - QUALIFYING: DRS EFFECTIVENESS
So… I discovered something while digging through some old code of mine...
Remember 🔵 Red Bull's 'godly' DRS from 2023? It's back!
In Mexico it reduced drag by an estimated 34.7%! ✅
Others:
🟢 Merc: 34.0% ✅
🟠 McL: 27.1%
🔴 Ferrari: 21.4% ❌
In Austin? Same trend! (lower values due to less loaded wings):
🔵 RBR: 29.3%✅
🟢 Merc: 26.7%
🔴 Ferrari: 21.9%❌
🟠 McL: 21.5%❌
McL’s deficit makes it harder for its drivers to battle on track, which favours VER.
The proof is in the first comment.
👇
So… I discovered something while digging through some old code of mine...
Remember 🔵 Red Bull's 'godly' DRS from 2023? It's back!
In Mexico it reduced drag by an estimated 34.7%! ✅
Others:
🟢 Merc: 34.0% ✅
🟠 McL: 27.1%
🔴 Ferrari: 21.4% ❌
In Austin? Same trend! (lower values due to less loaded wings):
🔵 RBR: 29.3%✅
🟢 Merc: 26.7%
🔴 Ferrari: 21.9%❌
🟠 McL: 21.5%❌
McL’s deficit makes it harder for its drivers to battle on track, which favours VER.
The proof is in the first comment.
👇
🔥9🥰1🤯1
Formula Data Analysis
MEXICO CITY GP - QUALIFYING: DRS EFFECTIVENESS So… I discovered something while digging through some old code of mine... Remember 🔵 Red Bull's 'godly' DRS from 2023? It's back! In Mexico it reduced drag by an estimated 34.7%! ✅ Others: 🟢 Merc: 34.0% ✅…
I performed a nonlinear regression using a simplified model of longitudinal dynamics:
P = m*v*a + 0.5*CxA*ρ^v^3
So:
P = (m*a+k*v2)*v
P = m*v*a + k^v^3
Engine power P and car mass m don’t change with DRS
I estimated k twice: first using instants without DRS, then with DRS (in quali→no tow).
Results are robust, as both teammates showed similar values (e.g. 21.4% for LEC and 21.9% for HAM).
Repost this if you found it interesting!
P = m*v*a + 0.5*CxA*ρ^v^3
So:
P = (m*a+k*v2)*v
P = m*v*a + k^v^3
Engine power P and car mass m don’t change with DRS
I estimated k twice: first using instants without DRS, then with DRS (in quali→no tow).
Results are robust, as both teammates showed similar values (e.g. 21.4% for LEC and 21.9% for HAM).
Repost this if you found it interesting!
🔥18✍2
What’s going on with Alpine? 🤔
In Mexico, every team went quicker in quali than last year - except for Alpine, which was 0.654s SLOWER!
Gasly said he was satisfied with the progress from Friday to Saturday… yet he qualified 18th (8th last year).
The team claims it’s focused on 2026, but so are most others... and that shouldn’t make them SLOWER than last year.
Underpowered engine, poor low-speed performance… they’ve only scored points at four tracks so far, mainly those demanding high aero efficiency: Bahrain, Catalunya, Silverstone, Spa.
They currently sit dead last in the WCC, their worst showing since 1978!
What's your take? 👀
Made via @JMP_software
In Mexico, every team went quicker in quali than last year - except for Alpine, which was 0.654s SLOWER!
Gasly said he was satisfied with the progress from Friday to Saturday… yet he qualified 18th (8th last year).
The team claims it’s focused on 2026, but so are most others... and that shouldn’t make them SLOWER than last year.
Underpowered engine, poor low-speed performance… they’ve only scored points at four tracks so far, mainly those demanding high aero efficiency: Bahrain, Catalunya, Silverstone, Spa.
They currently sit dead last in the WCC, their worst showing since 1978!
What's your take? 👀
Made via @JMP_software
🤔7❤4
SÃO PAULO GP 🇧🇷 | WING THURSDAY!
Medium-load setups on average, but with plenty of variety:
• Medium-low: Mercedes, Racing Bulls (better if dry);
• Medium-high: Aston, Alpine, Haas (better if wet).
Also big design contrasts: ‘V’-shaped lower plane for McLaren/Ferrari vs full-width for Red Bull.
📸 @AlbertFabrega
Medium-load setups on average, but with plenty of variety:
• Medium-low: Mercedes, Racing Bulls (better if dry);
• Medium-high: Aston, Alpine, Haas (better if wet).
Also big design contrasts: ‘V’-shaped lower plane for McLaren/Ferrari vs full-width for Red Bull.
📸 @AlbertFabrega
👍8❤6
SÃO PAULO GP 🇧🇷 | SPRINT QUALIFYING
BEST SECTOR GAP:
NOR was just 0.014s behind VER in Sector 1, and quickest in the other 2. VER lost over 4 tenths in S2 alone!
Teams by ideal lap/sector
1) 🟠 McL/NOR (quick everywhere);
2) 🟢 Aston/ALO (well-rounded);
3) ⚫️ Merc (Struggled in S2, good S3);
4) 🔵 RBR/VER (Fantastic S1, disaster S2);
...
7) 🔴 Ferrari! Slow everywhere, and worst car in S3!
BEST SECTOR GAP:
NOR was just 0.014s behind VER in Sector 1, and quickest in the other 2. VER lost over 4 tenths in S2 alone!
Teams by ideal lap/sector
1) 🟠 McL/NOR (quick everywhere);
2) 🟢 Aston/ALO (well-rounded);
3) ⚫️ Merc (Struggled in S2, good S3);
4) 🔵 RBR/VER (Fantastic S1, disaster S2);
...
7) 🔴 Ferrari! Slow everywhere, and worst car in S3!
❤8🥰1
SÃO PAULO GP 🇧🇷 | RACE: TOP SPEED PER LAP
🚀 With a fresh power unit, Verstappen hit the highest top speed (346 km/h, same as low-drag Sauber) in his stunning charge from pit lane to the podium, despite an early puncture!
Reminiscent of Hamilton’s 2017/2021 Brazil comebacks.
🏁 Fastest race pace too, even in traffic; full analysis tomorrow!
🚀 With a fresh power unit, Verstappen hit the highest top speed (346 km/h, same as low-drag Sauber) in his stunning charge from pit lane to the podium, despite an early puncture!
Reminiscent of Hamilton’s 2017/2021 Brazil comebacks.
🏁 Fastest race pace too, even in traffic; full analysis tomorrow!
❤6👏3