The De-brief: Friesacher explains Formula 1’s evolution, what makes Verstappen special, and Rovanperä’s single-seater switch.

PHOTO CREDIT: Red Bull Content Pool

Racing is a dream for many, but achieving that dream is a far greater challenge. For many aspiring drivers, the ultimate goal is to reach Formula One. However, reaching the very top demands steadfast commitment, determination, and sacrifice, with no guarantees along the way. For those who do make the cut, the reward is a lifetime achievement, because only 22 drivers can race at the very top. One such driver is Patrick Friesacher, who realized that dream when he competed in Formula One with the Minardi F1 Team in the early 2000s.

The former Formula 1 driver visited Cape Town for the first time in November last year. Although South Africa itself is not unfamiliar territory for him, as he had previously visited the country in 2005 and 2006, when he drove a Formula 1 two-seater at the Kyalami circuit in Johannesburg.

With nearly two decades of involvement in Formula 1 – from racing with Minardi to his current role as an Exhibition Driver, Instructor, and Brand Ambassador for Oracle Red Bull Racing, Friesacher has experienced the sport across different eras. 

From the resource-limited teams in the early 2000s to the highly complex simulation, budget cap, and data-driven operations in the current era of the sport, he has truly seen Formula 1 evolve. The Austrian explains the differences that he has seen, “When I raced for Minardi, it was a pretty small team with a small budget. They were working with around 200 people. Now, at the big teams, with engine departments and everything included, you’re looking at almost 1,600 people. The whole structure is completely different – you can’t really compare.”

Friesacher waves the South African flag at the Heineken World Tour.
IMAGE SUPPLIED: Heineken SA

Friesacher’s motorsport journey began at the age of five, when he started karting. He progressed through the ranks, but it was a victory in a Formula 3000 race at the Hungaroring that truly catapulted the Austrian into the spotlight. That performance caught the attention of the Minardi team principal, Paul Stoddart, who offered Friesacher a test in an F1 car. 

On 22 November 2004, Friesacher completed his first F1 test with Minardi at the Misano circuit in Italy. He completed a total of 41 laps and emerged as the fastest driver of the day – a result that strongly impressed the team.

The performance convinced Stoddart to sign the young Austrian for the 2005 season; however, financial backing initially delayed his entry into Formula 1. 

Dane Nicolas Kiesa was initially earmarked for the 2005 seat; however, he failed to secure the required funding. And, in February that year, Friesacher was announced as a Minardi driver alongside Christijan Albers.

Whilst a career-best sixth-place finish came at the United States Grand Prix during the infamous Michelin tyre debacle, Friesacher’s Formula 1 career came to an end after just eleven races due to a lack of funding from his partners. However, reflecting on his time in the sport, the Austrian said, “It was great to reach Formula 1. It helped me a lot. I will never forget it for my whole life. It’s something special.”

Since then, Formula 1 has evolved into a global technological playground, characterized by substantial budgets, extensive staffing structures, and data-driven and simulation-based development. According to Friesacher, the evolution has not only reshaped the cars, but also the demands placed on the drivers these days. 

The current age of Formula 1 places high demands on drivers, including the new younger generation, who require not only raw speed but also technical intelligence, because data and feedback are critical to the development and optimization of a race car.

As Formula One evolved through the years, so has the technology. If you take a look back at the early 2000s, when teams used naturally aspirated V8 engines, it wasn't easy at all for the smaller teams to fight their way forward and truly challenge the powerhouse teams, who had the backing of enormous budgets, unrestricted testing, high-end equipment, and simulations.

Regulatory changes eventually brought an end to the fan-favourite V8 engines with KERS, ushering in the highly complex hybrid era. V6 turbo power units were introduced, complete with MGU-K and MGU-H energy recovery systems, which entered a new chapter in Formula One’s history — one dominated by Mercedes High Performance Powertrains (HPP). That era yielded eight constructors’ championships and seven drivers’ titles, underscoring the importance of investment and technical know-how.

As the dominant Mercedes era came to an end, Formula 1 entered a transitional phase, which began in 2021. Max Verstappen’s title-winning season ushered in the beginning of the ground-effect era that would follow in 2022, during which one driver consistently rose above the rest, asserting dominance and later overcoming obstacles to fight for victories once more.

Having worked within the Red Bull Racing family for years, Friesacher has witnessed Verstappen’s rise firsthand – from teenage prodigy to four-time Formula 1 World Champion. “He's very special," Friesacher exclusively told Slipstream SA. “Even for his young age, he knows what he's doing, he understands the car, he's building the right people around him, and everything together, the whole package that he has.”

What stands out most to the Austrian is Verstappen’s ability to extract maximum performance from a car.

“Driving-wise – his driving style, even in the rain, in the wet, you see he's driving different lines, and yeah, he has something very special, I would say,” he said.

Adaptability has become one of the most valuable traits in modern motorsport, as demonstrated by Fernando Alonso, who took part in the world toughest rally-raid, the Dakar Rally, and the World Endurance Championship, whilst Max Verstappen’s participation — and victory – in the Nürburgring Langstrecken-Serie (NLS) alongside Chris Lulham, illustrates how top drivers are no longer confined to a single discipline.

It’s a reality now facing two-time World Rally Champion Kalle Rovanperä, who made headlines after announcing his move to the Japanese Super Formula championship.

Data analysis following Kalle Rovenpera's run in the Red Bull F1 car.
PHOTO CREDIT: Red Bull Content Pool

Rovanperä’s rise in the World Rally Championship has often been described as meteoric. The Finn won his first WRC title at just 22 years old. He combined exceptional car control with maturity. However, transitioning from the world of rallying to high-downforce, single-seater racing presents an entirely new challenge.

In November 2024, the Finn was invited to drive a Red Bull Racing Formula 1 car at the Red Bull Ring in Austria. Before the outing, he underwent an intensive training programme under Friesacher’s guidance, which included extensive simulator work, driving Formula 4 machinery, a Formula Renault 3.5 car, and ultimately a 2012 Red Bull RB8 — completing around 10 laps to experience true downforce levels and the performance of a Formula 1 car.

Rovanperä described the experience to DirtFish.com after driving the RB8, saying, “It was really cool to finally sit in an F1 car. It’s definitely really a different feeling than what a rally car gives with the seating position and everything – how it’s set up. So yeah, for sure, I was really excited to get to finally drive an F1 car.”

“With an F1 car, you definitely have so much downforce that, physically, it’s very different than a Rally1 car; you have a lot more g-forces, but it was pretty much how I expected it. Not too bad to be honest, but of course, if you do a long race, you can definitely feel the g-forces.”

“I was excited for the day, and it went pretty well. I got to experience three different formulas, so it was a good experience, and I think yeah, we did well, and I enjoyed it a lot!”, he said.

In 2026, Rovanperä will complete his transition to high-downforce single-seaters by competing in Super Formula – a challenge that will test both his adaptability and technical understanding.

“I think it will be hard,” Friesacher said. “Speed-wise, at the Red Bull Ring, he was quick. But the difficult part in racing is always the last three or four tenths.”

That final margin, he explained, often separates good from excellent in the circuit racing realm. While a driver can adapt quickly to reach a competitive baseline, extracting the final one thousandth of a second – especially over a race distance – requires deep technical understanding, confidence, and experience.

“You get very quickly to a certain point, but the last half a tenth — that’s the difficult part. But it won't be easy for him; it will be difficult,” he said.  

Motorsport history offers numerous examples of drivers who have successfully crossed disciplines, including Sir John Surtees, Mario Andretti, Petter Solberg, Stéphane Peterhansel, Sébastien Loeb, Mattias Ekström, and, more recently, Johan Kristoffersson.

All of these drivers have demonstrated remarkable versatility, adaptability, and mental resilience in achieving the success that they have across different disciplines.

The 45-year-old Austrian, now a resident instructor at the Red Bull Ring, has helped guide multiple world champions during their first experiences in Formula 1 machinery, including Sébastien Ogier and Sébastien Loeb.

 Patrick Friesacher explains the different features of the cockpit at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.
PHOTO CREDIT: Red Bull Content Pool

With a wealth of experience as both a former Formula 1 driver and instructor, his advice to young drivers climbing the motorsport ladder remains simple.

“[Be] hard working, have a dream, reach your goals, and just go for it,” he said.

In motorsport, time is everything – the difference between first and last is often measured in thousandths of a second, because time is of the essence. And, when spending time with someone who has reached the very top of the motorsport pyramid, it offers something far more valuable: perspective. And as the world evolves, so too does the relentless pursuit of the perfect lap time.

*THIS CONTENT IS COPYRIGHT PROTECTED. NO UNAUTHORISED USE IS PERMITTED. PERMISSION MUST BE OBTAINED IN ADVANCE, AND FULL CREDIT TO SLIPSTREAM SA IS REQUIRED.

Formu1a.uno - Ferrari, the race pace did not disappear.

PHOTO CREDIT: Scuderia Ferrari

There is more and more margin between the Verstappen-Hamilton duo and the rest of the world. As always, when there is a very strong fight for the championship, the two title protagonists receive maximum support and tend to distance themselves from their teammates as well.

A gap that could expand further in the championship, also thanks to the total freezing of the others in view of 2022. It will not be surprising, as long as the championship is alive we will have other races with many dubbed.

Yesterday only the top four completed all the laps, but the fact that we ran on the shortest track of the year in terms of time should not be underestimated.

Max won effortlessly, Hamilton's difficulties were already quite evident on Saturday with the rear tending to slide. Little protection on the rear, with a more qualifying-oriented set-up, where Mercedes had to recover against Red Bull.  But in the race he didn't give the expected results, Toto Wolff admitted it too. The very hot conditions certainly didn't help. Only the rain would have narrowed the gap a little, reducing the importance of the rear to the advantage of the front axle.

The optimization and understanding of the W12 is no longer enough, which now looks like a car at its 'maximum'. To date clearly inferior to that of the RB16B, which has grown in recent events thanks to the understanding of the many updates brought to the track, including two versions of front wings (Monaco and Baku), more tweaks to the diffuser, and the leap forward in terms of use of the power unit from the French GP.

This was not lost on the competitors, Mercedes, and Ferrari, who clearly noticed it. According to Red Bull, a new oil specification has increased the horsepower of Honda's #2 unit, which is the same spec from the start of the season given the freeze in terms of updates.

As for the oil, an update between the end of the 2020 and 2021 seasons was granted.

Verstappen has won an important race and goes 18 points up on the defending champion while RedBull has stretched away in the constructors: the fourth win in a row is a very big sign.

In the meantime, it should also be remembered that with the introduction of the technical directive on Flexi Wings, RedBull showed no signs of weakness on the straight that some were afraid to see. But that may have been well 'absorbed' by the performance boost of the Honda PU. However, it could have reliability as its weak point.

Mercedes is very confident in this. It is not for nothing that they put pressure on the 'flexi wings' in order to also affect Honda. Forcing them to push even further was their goal.

Ferrari has shown itself in good shape and does not eat the tyres as some believe or would have us believe.

What is certain is that Ferrari has lost many, too many points since the start of the season.  Also this weekend at the Styrian GP.

Despite the clearly duller qualifying than usual, the SF21 was certainly able to finish further up the standings (P5 and P7), certainly in full battle with Norris. The Lando himself confirmed this: "Without the problem Leclerc had, he would have been in front of us, or at least it would have been a great threat".

Leclerc's contact with Gasly, avoidable by the Monegasque, is just an episode between bad luck and negligence that is added to others.

Unlike Paul Ricard, Ferrari chose a very loaded (higher downforce) setup at Spielberg: a configuration similar in some ways to the one used with the SF90.  However, two years ago the Maranello car could amply afford a lot more drag on the straights.

The SF21 is much better than the SF1000 in almost everything, so even in terms of aerodynamic efficiency, but it still pays HP from rivals and its own 2019 power unit. Which is saying something. Nonetheless, the average race pace was very convincing since Friday when there was still little grip.

With increasing grip, things have also improved, with no signs of overheating, obviously maintaining the problem of straight-line speed under the same conditions. That is, in qualifying, when all the cars can open the DRS at the same time but in the race it is different.  With no trains with open DRSs for many, the SF21 passed pretty smoothly just about every car except Red Bull and Mercedes.

It would have been difficult to pass Lando's McLaren but Leclerc, with the race without significant traffic, would have finished 49 seconds behind Verstappen according to what we collected. Carlos Sainz, more penalized by the starting position, gained a lot: 5 positions over Gasly.

Unlike Portimão, Paul Ricard, or certain stages in Baku, the SF21 activated the tyres correctly in all conditions.

It is quite evident that the problems (not easy to solve because they depend on a front which is that of the SF1000) arise when the characteristics of the track favor the protection of the front tyres combined with low grip.

We have now entered the week of the Austrian GP, ​​which will be raced on softer compounds (the compound for qualifying will be the C5) and with a goal at Ferrari: try to make some steps forward on Saturday...  Which will then be the work that drivers and engineers will carry out in the next few hours to understand if it will be worthwhile on Friday to make a set-up comparison, bringing the spoon wing seen at Paul Ricard back to the track or whether to confirm the macro setup used in this positive weekend...

We have a very interesting week ahead of us for other reasons as well.

Pirelli will propose sets of new updated rear tyres that the teams will test in free practice. It is clear that such a change can only produce effects, starting with Silverstone, the GP in which the Federation would like to introduce them.

Pirelli received a request for willingness to introduce safer tyres directly from the FIA. For this, no vote will be needed but only FIA and Pirelli, obviously hearing the opinions of the teams, will decide whether to introduce them. The odds to date are still very high, given what has been collected.

What are the effects? It is difficult to predict. But to put it to Wolff, "this year we take everything that can be a 'bet' as we have to make up ground".

It should be considered that the traction phase heavily penalized by aerodynamic limitations seemed to be a fundamental key to finding performance. This despite the fact that even in this appointment the loss of performance compared to 2020 should be highlighted. With the same compounds, we always find ourselves with cars far from the pace of a year ago. Red Bull gained seven-tenths of an average pace over Mercedes, taking the lead by 0.2 seconds.

Ferrari does not mind - on paper - an even stiffer rear tyre, which may also have to force the opponents to implement the relative load to manage the setup and activate the rear tyres. In this sense, the Ferrari would seem to lack that middle configuration that others: McLaren and AlphaTauri in addition to Red Bull, have genetically available.

 If this were true, the margin on the obverse could become thinner in certain contexts.

 In a few days, there will be a sort of replay that promises to be very interesting for everyone.

Article Written By: Giuliano Duchessa and Piergiuseppe Donadoni from Formu1a.uno

Original Link In Italian: https://www.formu1a.uno/ferrari-il-passo-gara-non-era-scomparso/