Andrea Stella is impressed by Williams and its straightline speed, as he expands on the wobbling Esteban Ocon’s rear wing.
It was a mixed situation for McLaren when Williams’ Alexander Albon was holding up the pack in F1 Canadian GP. It brought Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri in the points pack, but at the same time, the Brit’s penalty left him in a bad situation.
He actually had the chance on Alpine’s Ocon but couldn’t stick and the penalty cost him a Top 10 position. McLaren team principal Stella on a broader scene was impressed by Willliams’ straightline speed which was difficult to penetrate for the Alpine and co.
“More than impressed,” said Stella to the media. “I think it confirms not only that Williams has these good characteristics of top speed, but I think in this weekend they also make their car quicker. It goes otherwise the top speed is not enough.
“But if we see the traction out of corner 10, you can have that traction only if you have grip. This is independent of your straight line speed. So it’s good for them and we hope that we can make similar steps of lap time in the future.”
From engineering point of view, Stella felt it was extreme wobbling even though that Alpine didn’t get the penalty. He then opened up on watching the wobble from
“It was extreme,” said Stella. “You need to know the construction of the your car. You need to assess what’s wrong? Then you need to wonder have I driven out my car and my component in this condition? It’s very likely the answer is no, we didn’t.
“So I think here it becomes a sense of responsibility, which every team can interpret in a different way. I think it was on television for some time. Then when Lando was following Ocon, he said that it got worse and worse. This was the kind of concerning element.
“Sometimes we saw already before the Alpine rear wing wobbles votes. But then when Lando reported it, and we started to look like there’s something broken on that wing. It can’t wobble like that just out of its normal behaviour.
“No, it wouldn’t be accepted by the FIA. It wouldn’t be accepted by the team. I’m sure the wing is not operating within design. How much it cost Alpine? I cannot say. i would really be big guessing. Certainly I’m surprised that the Alpine wasn’t in condition to pass Albon because the tyres were much newer.
“So they must have lost some performance because of the tyre difference. I think if Lando was behind Albon, we should have been able to pass. So naybe that was a contribution to create this little train,” summed up Stella.
Here’s Alexander Albon holding station
Here’s Esteban Ocon leading Lando Norris behind Alexander Albon