Testing is done, and teams are preparing themselves for the first race of the year in Melbourne, a circuit that usually doesn’t paint the most realistic picture of the teams, but definitely highlights the weaknesses of the different Formula 1 cars of 2019. However, if there’s a company willing to maximise its potential in Australia, it has to Alfa Romeo.
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The new Alfa Romeo C38 seems to be, by far, the most different single-seater of the grid, with its characteristic front wing, Kimi Raikkonen and Antonio Giovinazzi’s car looked promising in Barcelona, showing a good pace and making its improvement clear in aerodynamics in comparison with last year.
That said, Kimi Raikkonen acknowledged they were not where they would like to be and confirmed there was still room for improvement in terms of understanding the tyres. He noted that the preparation was an all-positive experience so far.
Indeed, the transition from Ferrari to Sauber has not been a great deal for the Iceman, who is now the leader of a team that has a solid package, as he stated during testing. The optimistic Finn confirmed that they definitely hope to be in the fight for the points.
Seemingly, and from what we saw in Barcelona, the new Alfa Romeo C38 is out from the bottom of the table, and it looks as though the Swiss car aims at higher positions, so don’t be surprised if you see the red-and-white single-seater in the Q3.
After four years in Ferrari, the Iceman takes the lead in Sauber, a smaller team he knows quite well. The Finnish racer looked more relaxed, providing images of him repairing his own seat, the footage we never actually saw when wearing the red overall.
The countdown for Australia has already started, and Alfa Romeo hopes to steal the show in a competition that is set to be tighter than ever, and perhaps this is the year that Alfa Romeo can bring so much fresh air into the sport by putting Tatiana Calderón behind the steering wheel of a Formula 1 car.
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