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F1 decided not to allow teams to recover energy from the front axle, only the rear. So to help recover sufficient energy, they have created moveable front and rear wings, to reduce drag on the straights, to ensure the cars are braking for longer.<\/p>\n
This has meant the removal of the DRS overtaking aid – because the rear wing is opening for a different reason. It will be replaced by an extra boost of electrical energy if a car is within one second of another, the so-called overtake mode.<\/a><\/p>\n Ensuring all these systems work, and beginning work on optimising energy-usage strategies, will be the focus of this first test.<\/p>\n As well as new engines, the rules for the first time mandate fully sustainable fuels, which are carbon-neutral and made from either waste biomass or synthetic industrial processes, or both.<\/p>\n In theory, these are ‘drop-in’ fuels that are a straight replacement for petrol. But in reality they behave differently because of the number of elements they comprise, which has required revised combustion systems to ensure the fuel burns cleanly.<\/p>\n Teams will also be getting to grips with cars whose aerodynamics have changed fundamentally from last year.<\/p>\n The cars are slightly smaller, lighter and narrower, as are the tyres. And in addition to the moveable wings, the entire philosophy behind the chassis rules has changed.<\/p>\n Gone are the underbody venturi tunnels that created ground effect that required the cars to be run as close to the ground as possible with super-stiff suspension.<\/p>\n In their place, F1 has the return of what are known as step-plane floors, essentially flat bottoms similar to those run from 1983 to 2021.<\/p>\n This means the aerodynamics will work in a completely different way, and the cars will behave and need to be driven differently, as a consequence. It is also likely to mean the return of rake – the rear running at a significantly higher ride-height than the front, as was the case until the end of 2021 – and slightly softer springs.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n