With the first Formula 1 test now completed and having seen all ten cars out on the track, we finally know how the new aerodynamic regulations for 2017 will shape the cars.
The aim of making them five seconds a lap faster than the previous generation certainly looks plausible, especially if the development rate from the previous few years continues into the new era.
Formula 1 in 2017 will certainly look different, with the wider, more aggressive cars – coupled with massive Pirelli tyres – pushing the sport into a more aerodynamic dependent direction.
In the long, looping Turn 3 of the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, some of the drivers have been pulling close to 5G thanks to the increased cornering speeds.
Lewis Hamilton, in particular, has praised the way the cars are now more demanding to drive, and seeing drivers tiring towards the end of a race will be a welcome sight to the long-term fans of the sport.
What remains to be seen is how well the cars can follow – and therefore overtake – each other. The new cars may suffer worse from turbulence than the old ones did, which will not help the racing at all.
I’ve taken an in-depth look at the major changes from the 2016 cars to the ones we will see on the track in 2017:
