Shanghai (China), Mar 11 (LaPresse) – Just days after the season opener in Melbourne, Formula 1 remains in the Asia-Pacific region for the Chinese Grand Prix, the second round of the World Championship and the first Sprint weekend of the season. On the Shanghai circuit, Scuderia Ferrari HP, like all other teams, will face a particularly significant challenge: it will be the first time teams compete in a Sprint weekend with the new generation of cars, a format that leaves very little time to optimize car setup.
After the debut in Australia, the Chinese weekend represents a valuable opportunity to further understand, on a track with different characteristics, the behavior of the new cars, which have changed significantly in many areas, from aerodynamics to energy management. With completely new cars and still limited data available, the ability to prepare the weekend in the simulator and quickly make the most of the information gathered during the single one-hour practice session could make a significant difference.
The Sprint format minimizes track time for practice. Friday features a single 60-minute session starting at 11:30 local time (4:30 in Italy), followed in the afternoon at 15:30 by the Sprint qualifying to determine the starting grid for the short race, which will take place on Saturday morning over 19 laps. On the same day, teams will then have time to work on their cars in preparation for qualifying. Sunday’s race will start over a distance of 56 laps, equal to 305.066 kilometers.