MOTORSPORT: New era for F1 begins this weekend

Netflix and Bahrain pre-season testing set the scene for big changes in Formula 1

A new era in Formula 1 is about to begin and nothing proves it more than two things – testing and Netflix.

Wholesale changes to the technical regulations have produced a grid of very different looking race cars, something reflected in the pre-season lap times during testing at Barcelona in Spain and the Bahrain circuit that will host this weekend’s season-opening GP.

Red Bull looks to sit on top, ahead of a resurgent Ferrari, with Mercedes-AMG and Lewis Hamilton either battling to be competitive or camouflaging the speed in the most radical looking racer in the field for 2022.

But it’s the ’Netflix Effect’ which has really transformed Formula 1.

The fourth series of ‘Drive To Survive’ takes viewers inside the world of F1 in a way that was never possible until Netflix got involved, creating reality television stars and feuds at all levels.

The new series is much more like a soap opera than before, but when it dropped to televisions around the world it created a buzz that has already fuelled record attendances in the US GP at Austin in Texas and helped create a one-day sellout of tickets for a new race this year on the streets of Miami.

Toto Wolff and Christian Horner are the stars of the latest edition of DTS and, depending on your perspective, one of them will be a hero and the other a villain.

There is also widespread swearing, lots of unguarded comments from all sorts of pitlane insiders, and the best action photography of the 2021 season.

Heading into 2021, Netflix has done a brilliant job of firing up the emotion and the excitement of Formula 1.

The real results will be obvious after the first race in Bahrain, but the lap times in testing are confusing and surprising. That’s deliberate in many cases, as the tiddler teams look for quick times to grease their sponsors and the potential front-runners disguise their pace from their rivals.

Even so, newly-crowned world champion Max Verstappen and his Red Bull racer set the benchmark time on the final day of pre-season running, ahead of Charles Leclerc of Ferrari and Fernando Alonso of Alpine.

“No-one gives full beans or goes to qualifying spec at testing, so we can’t read too much into the timing screens,” said Verstappen.

Lewis Hamilton? Somehow he was only 17th, while his new British teammate George Russell ran fourth, and already staring the psychological games by claiming he is the underdog for 2021.

Our man Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren) did not take part in the Bahrain test after testing position to COVID-19 but is expected to race this weekend.

“I'm sure everyone can figure out that we are not the quickest at the moment. There is potential within our car to get us there, but we've just got to learn to be able to extract it and fix some of the problems,” said Hamilton.

So the clearest picture comes from Mark Webber, who has seen – and done – it all before, and points to the challenges for the season opener.

“I think a lot of the teams are very nervous,” said Webber.

“It’s set to be a hugely exciting year with complex changes to the appearance and driveability of the cars. Pre-season testing has provided us with some insights into how the teams are looking but until they race in earnest this weekend, performance and reliability is all to play for.

“It might take some time for us to see who has the advantage as it's an incredibly dynamic situation with quick rates of development – it’s going to be tremendous for the fans.”

F1 Bahrain final testing times: