TRACKSIDE VERDICT

EVERY YEAR I GO TO PRE-SEASON TESTING and enjoy a couple of days of watching the new cars in action. It’s interesting to see the cars live and there are always subtle nuances that you can pick up with a trained eye that you can’t really see on television.

With testing now being repeated annually at the Circuit de Catalunya, I’ve also now got my favourite watching spots, which I go back to year after year because it gives me a good reference to see how things have changed from the previous season, as well as contrasting the cars relative to each other.

Before I go into the details of what I saw, I’ve got to say that my overriding feeling from testing is that the cars are getting a bit too good and comfortable for the drivers. When every car on the grid can take Turns 3 and 9 without the drivers thinking about a lift off the throttle, that’s wrong. I remember being on the bus for the drivers’ parade in 2010 when we were chatting about Mark Webber taking Turn 9 flat on his way to pole and the other drivers were all massively impressed. The 2021 regulations