If in 2022 Alfa Romeo had managed to insert itself among the protagonists of the mid-group struggle thanks to a car that was lighter than the competition and with good mechanical qualities, this year the Swiss team has encountered greater difficulties. Despite the many changes made to the project during the winter break, including a change of concept, the Hinwil team failed to make the leap they hoped for, often finding themselves outside the top ten.
Also taking advantage of some unfortunate episodes on the part of their opponents, Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu were able to score six points in the first three rounds of the world championship, with an eighth place as the best result, obtained by the Finn right in the opening Grand Prix in Bahrain.
In Australia, however, the Chinese rider finished in ninth position, also taking advantage of a confusing finish that put the two Alpines out of action. The Melbourne appointment represented the last points race for Alfa Romeo, which from that moment on has never been able to return to the top ten, not even in Monaco, where Bottas stopped in eleventh place.
Valtteri Bottas, Alfa Romeo Racing C43
Photo by: Alfa Romeo
Right on the streets of the Principality, the “Biscione” team presented itself with various technical innovations, which were mounted on the car step by step, with a particular approach. In fact, in the first free practice session on Friday, the engineers chose to run with the old aerodynamic package, in order to be able to work accurately on the mechanical set-up with an already known basis.
Only in the second session in the late afternoon did the technicians then choose to mount the aero innovations which, in reality, should have made their debut on a more “traditional” track like that of Imola: many new components such as the floor, bonnet, a different cover for the rear suspension and modified brake ducts which above all have the task of creating a more stable platform to improve the race pace.
“The reason we started both cars on the old configuration is that we were doing some testing on the mechanical side for the Monaco Grand Prix, but we were actually also working on the mechanical side in preparation for Barcelona,” explained the boss. of Alfa Romeo’s track operations, Xavi Pujolar.
“So, first of all, we wanted to test a known aerodynamic package with other tests on the mechanical part and continue to work on this aspect as well. In Barcelona we will have the new package but we will also work on the mechanical configuration of the car, trying to improve substantially in all the areas where we need to try to optimize our performance, not just on the aerodynamic side”.
Alfa Romeo Racing C43
Photo by: Erik Junius
According to the team, even on a unique and particular track like Monte Carlo, the updates worked as hoped, highlighting the numbers the engineers expected in the wind tunnel. Clearly, however, it will be necessary to wait until the Barcelona weekend to get a clearer picture of both the value of the package and the position on the grid compared to their closest rivals.
“Yes, from our point of view, from Friday and Saturday’s practice, the updates are bringing what we expected in terms of performance. Both drivers were satisfied, but also from our data we can see that in terms of all loads within our expectations, the performance is there,” added Pujolar.
“What we need to understand now is that the other teams have made some updates, and where do we start in terms of relative performance. At the moment it’s not very clear why it’s such an uncharacteristic track, so we have to wait for Barcelona. The updates are working for us, but how do we stand against competitors? At the moment we do not have a clear picture of the situation ”.
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