Ferrari must safe a optimistic end result on the Las Vegas GP if it needs to keep up its momentum within the Constructors’ Championship battle, with three races remaining within the 2024 season. Eric Van der Veen, a 37-year-old Dutchman, is likely one of the engineers within the Racing Division who works on the simulator, supporting the periods drivers undertake in preparation for GPs.
The Breda-born technician, along with explaining the challenges of a novel city circuit like Las Vegas, guides us via what occurs on the Maranello simulator after the 2 drivers full free follow periods with the SF-24. This exercise is normally thought of prime secret by groups, however Van der Veen offers us a glimpse into the work of the check drivers—work that continues to be obscure however invaluable.
Eric explains the challenges of the observe on the Strip:
“Las Vegas is a kind of tracks which will appear simple when wanting on the structure, nevertheless it’s truly very tough. There are solely 5 sequences of corners, however all are low-speed with heavy braking zones, and a few are blind. The heavy braking zones have to be tackled completely, even when touring at speeds exceeding 340 km/h, which requires excessive downforce to provide the driving force the boldness to brake, navigate the corners, and speed up once more to sort out the lengthy straights, the place low drag and minimal aerodynamic load are wanted.”
The lengthy straights trigger each brake and tire temperatures to drop…
“The heavy braking zones on the finish of the straights current new challenges as a result of the driving force should handle the drop in brake and tire temperatures. Moreover, racing on a road circuit means the margin for error is minimal. Lastly, Las Vegas is within the desert, and the race takes place at night time, when temperatures can drop under 10°C, making it troublesome to rapidly deliver the tires into the correct temperature window throughout qualifying and equally difficult to maintain them there in the course of the race. As talked about, the tires cool additional on the lengthy straights, making a uniquely difficult situation for groups and drivers.”
Final yr, you had little or no knowledge to make use of on the simulator, which was the one device out there to assist the drivers and the group put together for this new circuit. Now that you’ve got actual knowledge from the observe, what function does the simulator play?
“Evaluating what we knew final yr with what we all know this yr, the scenario is totally completely different. Whereas final yr’s observe mannequin was based mostly on drawings, this yr we have now a whole illustration of the observe and its asphalt. With all the info from 2023, we are able to now predict far more precisely what to anticipate this yr. Because of this engineers and drivers—each Carlos and Charles, in addition to the drivers supporting us on the simulator—had been capable of higher put together for the weekend, each to familiarize themselves with the observe and to configure the automotive.”
Did each primary drivers work on the simulator?
“As standard, Charles and Carlos labored on the simulator, specializing in driving type and setups to reach well-prepared for Las Vegas, in addition to being able to deal with probably sudden situations. That is exactly when the simulator turns into an especially highly effective device, and preparation periods are invaluable for enabling drivers to optimize their driving type for a particular observe.”
What sort of help are you able to present to the group on the observe throughout Friday’s free follow periods?
“The simulator driver’s program throughout free follow focuses on optimizing particular person corners, as there are so few sequences the place the drivers could make a distinction. It’s essential that the drivers on observe have a automotive that enables them to push to the restrict with out exceeding it, because the corners are tight and blind. Subsequently, on the simulator, we primarily work on stability and cornering driving type, generally exceeding the restrict and hitting the partitions—fortunately, within the simulator, the injury isn’t actual (there’s solely a jolt to let the driving force know they’ve hit one thing!). Usually, throughout periods supporting the group on observe, we replicate the situations, setups, and driving type from follow laps precisely.”
After replicating the actions from free follow, do you search for options to enhance efficiency?
“On this method, we are able to determine the automotive’s strengths and weaknesses, search to enhance efficiency, and supply this suggestions to the group on observe, which might then work on the setups accordingly. We additionally use these periods to anticipate what to anticipate if climate situations change in the course of the weekend—for instance, variations in temperature, wind route, and depth from daily and even throughout a single session. By simulating these climate situations, we are able to inform the drivers what to anticipate, permitting them to extract most efficiency from the automotive earlier than even hitting the observe.”
Purchase official Ferrari F1 merchandise!
Let different Scuderia Followers find out about us
