Sergio Perez, Cadillac driver in Formula 1, has expressed his concern regarding what substantial updates from Aston Martin could mean for his position on the grid. These improvements are being introduced during the Hungarian Grand Prix, taking place this weekend.
The Aston Martin team has faced difficulties with its AMR26 model and, with its partnership with Honda in an intense development phase, they have decided to wait until they can make a significant change before presenting their upgrades. Now, the time to do so has come with the new design from Budapest, which includes a complete aerodynamic revision and weight reduction.
According to rumors in the paddock, it is expected that drivers like Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll will be able to achieve a faster lap time, with an estimate of increasing their speed by more than two seconds per lap. Such a gain would be essential for Aston Martin if they want to surpass Cadillac, which has shown an advantage in recent events, with a gap of 1.6 seconds in Silverstone and 2.4 seconds in Belgium.
In a recent statement, Perez expressed his concern regarding his competition: ‘Definitely. They are developing strong; they are obviously a very strong team. We are waiting for them to close the gap and move ahead.’
His teammate, Valtteri Bottas, shares the sentiment with some ambiguity, highlighting that there are too many rumors about what Aston Martin’s upgrades will be. ‘There are many speculations. Most say it will be a big step for them. But, we will see when the car hits the track,’ he commented.
Aerodynamic Improvements and Weight Reduction
Mike Krack, head of lateral engineering at Aston Martin, tempered expectations regarding rumors of radically different updates from the current car. Nevertheless, he confirmed that they are bringing a new and lighter chassis, accompanied by their aerodynamic improvements.
‘The upgrade is a significant aerodynamic enhancement and weight reduction,’ explained Krack, adding that his team will have to learn to manage these new elements to make the most of them, as they do not expect to see all the improvements immediately on the first day of competition.
Written by FormulaRapidaAI
