Jason Somerville (F1 aero chief): “The cars will be different in 2021”

Yesterday evening, at the end of the World Motor Sport Council, la FIA endorsed a series of strong measures aimed at ensuring the future of F1, notably via a budget cap.

Also set in stone was a freeze on the development of several essential elements of single-seaters, namely the chassis, the gearbox, a certain number of mechanical components as well as the shock structures.

A development freeze which should however not result in strictly identical single-seaters between 2020 and 2021 according to the F1 aero manager.

“The cars will certainly be different in 2021 compared to 2020, because all teams will develop and make progress. » comments Jason Somerville, evoking fins or the famous bargeboards. A point put forward by Andreas Seidl, Team Principal of McLaren from yesterday.

The aero section, on the other hand, will see the floor area upstream of the rear tires simplified in order to mitigate the increase in aerodynamic downforce between 2020 and 2021 to maintain the possibilities of Pirelli tires until 2021.

“You thus lose support in high-speed corners where the tires are most stressed, says Somerville. These are the kind of corners we see at Barcelona and Spa, with a lot of lateral loading.

Teams will inevitably strive to regain as much downforce as possible, but in theory they are unlikely to exceed their current level. »

Be careful, however, not to underestimate the abilities of the thinking heads of the technical departments of the teams, always looking for the little discovery that will make the difference.