Australia: Season of Change Begins


By Jamie Makin
March 2 2005

With 6500 kilometers of test mileage on the C24 behind them, team SAUBER PETRONAS are confident they have a reliable car for the long season ahead. But the mystery remains as to how quick they will really be against their rivals.

"Overall, it is very difficult to make any predictions prior to the weekend," admitted Technical Director Willy Rampf. "We have not always run at the same venue as our competition during winter testing and we will only find out in Melbourne exactly where we are. That's what will make Saturday afternoon and Sunday in particular so exciting."

In recent seasons, the races have become processional and predictable with results often clear after the first set of pit stops. The FIA instituted a number of rule changes aimed at spicing up the show. "It's going to be a very interesting start to the season, because of the new regulations.," Rampf went on to say. "It is no longer about the performance of the tyres on the first lap or in the early laps. Now the last part of the race will be absolutely crucial, and if they have conserved their tyres better than their rivals I think we will see some people being able to improve their positions in the closing stages after the final pit stops. There will be much more focus on the end of the race and a little less perhaps on grid position, and I think this is going to make things also interesting for the spectators."

So what are these changes that are expected to produce such a great show? They fall into three key areas: aerodynamics, tyres and qualifying. SAUBER find themselves in perhaps the best position of all teams to adapt to the aerodynamic changes due to their new wind tunnel at the Hinwil factory. "The new aerodynamic rules are quite drastic, with heavy revisions to the front and rear which have cost everyone quite a lot of downforce and made the cars a little more nervous," explained Rampf. SAUBER is the only team besides Williams BMW that can test a full size Formula One car in their tunnel. Williams recently admitted they are having trouble correlating their new wind tunnel data to on track performance, a problem that SAUBER does not seem afflicted by.

Long-life engines and tyres will also be a change teams will have to come to terms with. Engines must now last two race weekends and the reliability of the PETRONAS powerplant should give SAUBER the edge.

Tyres must last an entire race as well, requiring a driver to skillfully manage them or risk falling off the pace in the closing laps. "The new tyre rules will also make things very tricky for qualifying and the race as you may now only use one set of tyres from Saturday qualifying onwards," said Rampf. "You have to choose from your prime and option tyres on Friday, and between Saturday qualifying and the end of the weekend the single set you choose will have gone through several heating and cooling cycles, will have done two qualifying sessions, one on Saturday afternoon and one on Sunday morning, and the whole race. It will be crucial on Friday, therefore, to choose the tyre option that not only gives you optimum performance but also durability."

SAUBER have switched to Michelin this season after a long-standing partnership with Bridgestone. Michelin now have the benefit of seven teams in their stable and have racked up considerably more test mileage than their Bridgestone rivals. Rampf is confident SAUBER has made the right decision to switch camps. "Preserving the tyres in the race will be a major factor. During our long runs and race simulations in testing we have been quite pleased with the performance of our Michelin tyres," he said. "The tyre issue will also affect race strategy. There will be fewer refueling stops. Most races will probably be two stops, possibly even one, though there is a penalty in terms of car performance trying to get by with one because the tyres have a great fuel load to carry."

Qualifying has changed for the better, with both sessions counting towards a driver's final grid position. "Qualifying will now be different too. We will run with low fuel for maximum performance on Saturday afternoon, and then with race fuel on Sunday morning, and the times will be aggregated," Rampf explained. "Thus the effect of the fuel on the qualifying time will be less and the grid will be a more accurate reflection of true performance."

Felipe Massa will return for his third season of racing with the Swiss team and will be partnered by veteran Jacques Villeneuve. They will be hoping to make it to the finish of the race and score valuable point to kick off the 2005 campaign.

SAUBER PETRONAS - Prior Results at Albert Park, Melbourne: