At the Suzuka Grand Prix, Stake F1 demonstrated significant pit stop improvements, marking a pivotal progression.
This was confirmed by track engineering director Xevi Pujolar, as the race went ahead without any stubborn nut issues for the cars.
A hardware problem has disrupted Stake F1’s pit stops so far this year. Due to a change in front suspension philosophy for the 2024 season, the team was unable to revert to the previous equipment for stops, forcing them to seek a new solution to a problem that had not been detected during pre-season testing.
It’s worth noting that Guanyu Zhou did not complete the race (and therefore all the planned stops) as he had to retire due to a gearbox failure on lap 20. Valtteri Bottas finished in 14th place.
Stake F1 has always had slower pit stops than average at the Japanese Grand Prix compared to its rivals, but Pujolar was satisfied with them.
“If you look at where we were in the first three races, with stops sometimes lasting over 50 seconds, I’m satisfied with the pit stops we made in Japan.”
“We can see that some are making faster pit stops, yes, it’s a work in progress until we have all the solutions.”
In Suzuka, most teams recorded a total time loss in pit stops of about 23 to 24 seconds (stop and traverse the pitlane at 80 km/h). Bottas’s first stop lasted just under 25 seconds, while Zhou’s was about a second faster. Then, the Chinese retired.
But when Bottas came in with the group of cars fighting for the final position in the top 10, his stop of just under 26 seconds made him lose the advantage over those around him.
“It’s a shame because Valtteri could have been in the points without that. But overall, I would say we made significant progress. We didn’t have any disasters.”
“The pit stops were reliable, and that’s what we wanted, reliable, consistent, and constant. Then, we will have the speed and performance when everything is deployed.”
Stake F1: Evolving Pit Stops Signal Ongoing Progress. Stake F1: Evolving Pit Stops Signal Ongoing Progress
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