The 2023 season of Formula 1 drivers is drawing to a close, and it is clear that many new partnerships will be formed.
Leaving Daniel Ricciardo behind, McLaren will team up with newcomer Oscar Piast alongside Lando Norris. Fernando Alonso has been confirmed as a replacement for Sebastian Vettel at Aston Martin alongside Lance Stroll. So Esteban Ocon will have a new teammate at Alpine, as Alexander Albon at Williams, Nicolas Latifi has seen the door.
As teammates chop and change, how do the new pairings fit together? The battle for supremacy in each group is crucial, because it can often decide who has the best strategy and the new units – and who is relegated to the role of “number two”.
Indeed, F1 bosses have insisted they do not want to give priority care to either driver. Speaking at the launch of Mercedes earlier this year, team principal Toto Wolff discussed the preparations for Lewis Hamilton and his new teammate George Russell. Valtteri Bottas.
Wolf We have never encountered a “one” and “two” situation. “They had equal opportunities and the same car.
“This year, the exciting situation is the up and coming star in George [in one seat]And undoubtedly the best Formula 1 driver in the other seat. So the dynamic is new and it’s something we’re trying to steer in a direction that makes the car more competitive and more competitive overall.
Hamilton and Bottas had the same car and the same chances. Bottas has scored a total of seven points ahead of his team-mate of the world champion and has more than once prioritized Hamilton in his team’s bid for the title.
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At Red Bull, Sergio Perez had to play the number two role at the start of the year. His team-mate Max Verstappen, who won the race twice at the Spanish Grand Prix, was told to go. “That’s so unfair, but okay,” Perez reluctantly agreed. Speaking to the media later, he said that there were “a few things we are discussing internally” within the group.
Red Bull team principal Christian Horner defended the decision, saying Verstappen had a higher tire value and the team should use the retirement of Charles Leclerc, who entered the race leading the championship. “Both drivers worked together as a team and it was very important when Ferrari was in trouble to get the maximum points,” said Horner.
At the next race, Perez reminded himself of all he could do to win, claiming victory in Monaco. He made way for Verstappen again after the race. Red Bull have been quick to lean on Perez to help Verstappen, while Ferrari’s Leclerc has been finding himself behind Carlos Sanz-Jenner.
Some drivers, however, feel that the importance of the ‘number one’ and ‘number two’ roles in a team is often overrated. Lando Norris, who will compete with a rookie for the first time next season, will treat him and Ricciardo equally.
“I love it when people think they know what they’re talking about when they don’t and sometimes the exact opposite,” he began. “Especially from my point of view, every weekend before the race we have a little meeting about how we can work well as a team and how we don’t work as ‘number one’ and ‘number two’ and run the race tracks. I help Daniel in some situations and Daniel helps me in some situations.
“It’s literally the opposite of number one and number two. At the end of the day, it’s more about how we can work better as one. It’s about priority. One weekend I’ll have priority, then Daniel will have priority the next weekend. It’s absolutely fair.”
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So did Ocon, who has yet to learn who his team-mate will be next season and is currently battling with one of the grid’s most competitive drivers in Alonso.
“I’m leading my team in the development of how the car feels,” explained the Alpine driver. “I’m leading the team to make continuous improvements and where to focus, whether it’s the rear or the front or the ride. Fernando and I are strong on what the car does but we usually have very similar opinions on how the car feels.
But next year I will be the most experienced driver in the team. So it’s interesting. And if that is the case, I am ready to take on the role.
There will always be situations where a team is forced to prioritize one driver, such as when they only have one example of a major upgrade. Haas faced Kevin Magnussen’s car by improving ahead of Mick Schumacher. Similarly, Williams improved Albo’s car ahead of Lafi.
Even the main groups suffer from such headaches. Red Bull has been running different surfaces on Verstappen’s and Perez’s cars for the past few races, partly downplaying the need for the team to cut costs to meet budget capital.
Teams can be prepared to treat both drivers equally but there will always be situations where they have to choose one or the other. As we saw repeatedly last year, the pressures of the championship fight make that more likely and the budget can make such decisions more often in the future.
When that happens, history shows, it’s usually the driver’s performance that determines who gets what. In F1 the situation is simple: either make sure you are number one or risk being number two.
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