Fernando Alonso's new Aston Martin rear wing sprouts green on first use despite DRS failure
Published by The team in News the
02/05/2023 at 16:25
Aston Martin's long-awaited rear wing finally made its debut at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix , but it left many disappointed due to DRS issues that plagued Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll throughout the weekend. For the first time this season, no Aston Martin reached the podium.
However, despite these problems, Aston Martin's new wing did not fail. In reality, the data collected by Aston Martin is very positive, and Fernando Alonso's wing was a success from its first use. The DRS' youthful worries should not be taken as an indication of the new wing's effectiveness.
Data from Aston Martin's new wing invites optimism, despite DRS
The Aston Martin staff suffered a difficult ordeal during the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The new sprint format and the uninterrupted race complicated the situation, especially since the DRS on the new wing began to malfunction already in free practice and could not be repaired throughout the weekend.
The failure was related to hydraulics rather than system activation, as the DRS could not open in high pressure areas. This explains why it sometimes worked on the shorter straight but not on the long one, as the hydraulics were unable to provide the force needed to open the wing in the most difficult sections.
In qualifying, Fernando Alonso's top speed was 326 km/h , which is considerably slower than Max Verstappen's Red Bull which reached 342 km/h. The Aston Martin was the slowest car on the circuit, which has the longest straight in the world championship, stretching 1.2 kilometers.
However, it wasn't all negative, as Aston Martin developed a new wing to reduce air resistance and improve the DRS system. These improvements paid off in Baku , where the Aston Martin was less affected by air resistance and used its DRS system effectively. There is one week left to fix the issues before the race in Miami.
The laps where DRS was used allowed Alonso to reach top speeds of 335 km/h, which are similar to those of other teams equipped with Mercedes engines. A year before, Red Bull also had problems with their DRS when introducing their new wing, but they quickly found a solution.
Alonso managed to minimize the problems on a difficult circuit and finished fourth, almost on the podium. Although the DRS failed, Aston Martin is confident of the performance of the new wing.