02/01/2022
NEWS STORY
McLaren boss, Zak Brown is confident that with the massive rules overhaul this year we will see a number of teams challenging the current 'big two'.
At a time some of the leading lights within the F1 paddock are claiming that the sport is enjoying a "boom", the fact is that if good times really are just around the corner, the rules overhaul must work.
Almost from the moment Liberty Media got the keys to F1, one of its aims moving forward was to level the playing field in the hope that no one or two teams would dominate.
Where Bernie Ecclestone and Max Mosely failed in terms of the budget cap, Liberty has succeeded, however, this just a part of the grand plan.
The rules overhaul, driven by Ross Brawn and his colleagues is meant to improve the racing and also open up opportunities for those teams currently running in the midfield to challenge for wins as opposed to scoring the occasional victory.
Even before a wheel has turned however, some are warning that the impact might not be felt for a couple of seasons, however McLaren boss, Zak Brown is confident that even this year we will see a number of teams challenging the current 'big two'.
"I'd be very surprised if next year was a boring campaign with the new cars," he said, according to Motorsport Week. "I think we'll get some winners and losers, some surprises.
"I'd be surprised if there was dominance," he continued, weeks after Mercedes secured its eight successive constructors' title. "You could get a team that is maybe dominant for a small period of time, like Brawn was when they figured out something in 2009. But I think with the cost cap in place, you can feel the tension that's put on the teams of, when you stop developing the car at the expense of 2022."
Indeed, Brown is confident that come Abu Dhabi in November, as opposed to just two teams battling for supremacy we could see as many as four.
"I'd be surprised if the field didn't continue to get closer," he said. "My hopes are we go to Abu Dhabi with three or four cars that compete for the championship, I think that's the ultimate goal.
"I think the year's been spectacular up and down the grid and I hope what's been put in place with the new car designs, new aero package, that what we've seen now is just a taste of the future."
Meanwhile, F1 CEO, Stefano Domenicali believes that while the full impact of the rule changes might not be felt at the outset, indeed one team might initially appear to have the upper hand, in time the performance gap will be closed as intended.
"It is clear that in the context of a season that starts with a new regulation and the budget cap, differences between the cars could emerge greater than what people might expect," he said. "But I am equally sure that the limitations linked to the new regulations will mean that if there are these differences, the gap will be closed more quickly."
So confident is Domenicali that the rules will level out the playing field, he believes that individual driver skills will come to the fore.
"We are facing a season in 2022 where there are so many new elements that can be characterised in a positive or negative sense," he said.
"The ground effect cars have been designed to highlight the skills of the drivers," he added. "They are machines that should be driven, without the wake effect that deteriorates the tyres of the following car. The goal is to have duels between many drivers, without having the limits related to the car."