The Virgin method is debated

This Thursday, the Virgin Racing VR01 did not run much, due to the loss of the front wing by Timo Glock, after the latter went over a curb. In two days at Jerez, the car of the team of John Booth and Nick Wirth only completed eleven laps, a low total when we consider that most drivers exceeded one hundred laps in a single day.

Therefore, the “virtual” design of the VR01 is debated. In fact, she is the first car not having gone through the wind tunnel stage, having been entirely thought out, designed, developed, tested using CAD (computer-aided design). Knowing that the success of a Formula 1 lies in its ability to cut through the air, many players in the premier single-seater category question the process used by Virgin Racing.

Adrian Newey, often considered one of the best designers in F1 today, believes that the wind tunnel is still necessary in the development of single-seaters. “ It's a different path, and my personal belief is that we still need to combine the two (CAD and wind tunnel, editor's note) at the moment, concedes the technical director of Red Bull Racing. But maybe their car will work just fine and I'll have to revise my opinion. »

On Thursday, Virgin Racing had to end its day of testing prematurely, due to the loss of the VR01?s front wing. This Friday, Lucas di Grassi is not expected to take to the track before the afternoon, with Virgin Racing awaiting the arrival of spare parts in order to rebuild the car.