A cursory look on the timesheets already pointed in that course, with Sergio Perez having set the benchmark general within the late flurry of decrease gas runs on the ultimate night as groups lastly unlocked some potential.
In actual fact, it was solely Guanyu Zhou’s glory run late on Friday to go top that prevented a clear sweep of Purple Bull’s dominance over the three days.
Even away from the headline instances, and as an alternative digging deep within the long-run kind – which is what actually issues and what groups pay most consideration to – it was clear that Purple Bull appeared to have all the things underneath management too.
The automobile’s reliability, other than a minor niggle on day two, appeared spot on, and there was nothing to counsel that any of Perez and Max Verstappen’s rivals had seemed a risk by way of lap instances over race simulation runs.
Purple Bull’s motorsport advisor Helmut Marko advised Sky Germany after the check: “Instances, as we all know in testing, are relative. We do not know what the competitors was like on gas, so in the event that they had been heavier than us, then our time is relative. But it surely has been proven that we’re dependable, that we’re quick, on the entrance.
“Above all that, what makes us very optimistic is that each of Perez’s and Max’s lengthy runs had been clearly not less than sooner than these of the competitors.”
Being the staff to beat in testing doesn’t, in fact, assure something with regards to producing outcomes on the weekend.
As Ferrari staff principal Fred Vasseur stated on the ultimate day: “I do not bear in mind who did the quickest lap time final yr in Bahrain, however he was not on pole place for the race. And that was the identical two years in the past.”
Nonetheless, analysing deeper how Purple Bull’s check panned out, there are a couple of different elements which have set alarm bells ringing for different groups of their hopes of leapfrogging F1’s world champion squad.
Max Verstappen, Purple Bull Racing RB19
Photograph by: Purple Bull Content material Pool
Easy tempo
Typically, the quickest F1 automobiles might be very difficult to drive on the restrict, with solely the perfect drivers capable of extract essentially the most from them.
However from the very first second that the RB19 hit the monitor in Bahrain, it seems to have been comparatively simple for Verstappen and Perez to take it to the sting.
Early on, with different groups battling to discover a good stability for his or her automobiles, Verstappen boasted about going through no dramas of his personal.
“Each time I jumped within the automobile, I felt comfy and will push immediately,” he stated.
That appeared to be borne on day one of many check the place, after a few set up laps, Verstappen spent the remainder of the day blasting by means of swift 5/6/7 laps run – all on the similar strikingly constant tempo and solely interrupted by coming into the pits for setup adjustments.
The consistency all through all these runs instructed that each he and the automobile had been in a brilliant completely satisfied place, and all the things was each underneath management and quick. For a brand new automobile check, it was mightily spectacular.
Reflecting on it himself, Verstappen stated that hitting that candy spot so early has given Purple Bull a large head begin in understanding the automobile.
“I do assume that the entire testing days have been very constructive for us,” he stated.
“The stability of the automobile was instantly good and, because of that, you possibly can strive numerous issues with the set-up – go extraordinarily in the direction of the left and intensely to the correct, so to talk. That is good, as a result of that is the way you study loads concerning the automobile.”
Max Verstappen, Purple Bull Racing RB19
Photograph by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images
New tyres giving Verstappen what he needs
Verstappen’s kind all through the 2022 automobile fluctuated a bit because the traits of the RB18 started far-off after which got here in the direction of his preferences.
The early season extra bulk that Purple Bull began the 2022 marketing campaign with meant the automobile was too lazy at turn-in, and that understeer attribute is one thing that Verstappen is thought to not like.
He famously stated over the winter that he has by no means identified there to be a fast racing automobile that had understeer.
As Purple Bull started its weight discount programme from the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, so too did issues flip round for Verstappen.
He received again a automobile that largely turned in how he appreciated it, and that helped set off the sort of dominance we noticed within the latter levels of the yr.
When it emerged that F1 tyre provider Pirelli was tweaking its merchandise for 2023, to ship a stronger entrance finish, that instantly pointed in the direction of issues edging much more in the direction of what Verstappen likes.
Reflecting on the finish of the three days working about his impressions of the tyres, Verstappen reckoned issues had fortunately gone as he appreciated.
“They provide much less understeer, however that is extra as a result of the rear tyres usually are not pretty much as good now as they had been final yr,” he stated. “The entrance tyres are simply the identical. However general, I do assume this yr’s automobile is a bit higher balanced.”
Sergio Perez, Purple Bull Racing RB19
Photograph by: Purple Bull Content material Pool
Reliability and weight not an issue
Whereas Purple Bull’s RB18 proved to be by far the very best 2022 race automobile, the staff had not began the yr in the very best form.
Its early season fortunes had been hampered loads by reliability, as the issues that wrecked its Bahrain and Australian Grands Prix fortunes even made it appear like the title was slipping away at that time.
These early season niggles proved to be nothing main as Purple Bull shortly received on high of issues. That subsequent sturdy reliability was carried over into the 2023 automobile, which ran nearly trouble-free throughout the three days of testing in Bahrain.
The opposite space the place Purple Bull was on the backfoot final yr has additionally been eradicated, with the squad having now hit its weight targets for the RB19.
Which means it’s not compelled right into a nook with set-up, and may have a lot better instruments at its disposal to chase lap time.
For Verstappen, the mindset is already that the 2023 marketing campaign is getting underway with a much-improved baseline than he had 12 months in the past.
“In comparison with final yr, as a result of that was sort of the identical automobile, it is a step ahead,” he stated. “However that is regular as a result of final yr our automobile was means too heavy.
“It was the primary yr with a complete new automobile and a brand new set of technical laws as nicely, so that you study loads all through that first yr. Due to that, I believe this yr begins a bit simpler.
“However you then nonetheless must make an excellent step ahead in fact, and I believe we have finished that.”
Few watching trackside in Bahrain final week may disagree.
