“Every kilogram lost will cost 200,000 GBP,” Red Bull faces yet another challenge after successfully negotiating ‘porpoising’

“Every kilogram lost will cost 200,000 GBP,” Red Bull faces yet another challenge after successfully negotiating ‘porpoising’

Sergio Perez's Red Bull in FP3

Red Bull, the only team at the front of the grid that seemed to have dealt with porpoising, stands on a conflicted path. The solution that never gave its drivers a chance to complain of the bouncing appears to be costing the team nearly 200K GBP per kilos of extra weight, according to the Italian website of Motorsport.com.

Red Bull’s car is at least 10 kg heavier than the minimum weight required as per the regulations. That means just the weight of the car could be costing Red Bull nearly 2 million GBP at a time when there’s a cost cap in place. This cost would be incurred for the solution of the excess weight.

Both Ferrari and Mercedes are trailing Red Bull in terms of the effectiveness of the solution of porpoising. But it seems now that Ferrari’s solution of air vents and hollowed-out belly is the most efficient, whereas Mercedes is yet to put the finger on a nearly effective solution.

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Ferrari and Red Bull at the Bahrain Grand Prix
Ferrari and Red Bull at the Bahrain Grand Prix

Any changes to the current design of the RB18 will affect the downforce of the car, which might hamper the team’s chances of competing with Ferrari. Although Helmut Marko has already announced the program to reduce the car weight, it could be challenging for the team given that there’ll be no testing rounds other than the free practice sessions.

Milton-Keyne’s team’s current solution to porpoising also gives them an advantage over the straights. As the source quotes it, “the more grazing the track is, allowing for more downforce from the car body, allowing for a decidedly more discharged rear wing that allows Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez to reach the highest maximum speeds.”

It’ll be interesting to see what approach Adrian Newey and his team take up. Any mistake here by the team could be decisive in the title, and with Ferrari not reporting any changes, Red Bull has no room for a mistake.

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