Q: Last week Will from Indy had a question expanding on my comments from the previous week regarding the relative speeds of F2, Super Formula and IndyCar, and I’m pleased to report I can actually shed some light on this. Not a very strong light, mind you, but one that nonetheless provides an interesting look at things.
A couple years back, I actually looked at some comparative lap times and made a rough calculation of how far off each was from a Formula Car and Super Formula only have one each (COTA and Suzuka respectively) it’s not going to be the most accurate of analyses, but it’s still a fun thing to look at.
Unfortunately, I lost the data I generated back then… But I know how to easily create it again!
I used Silverstone for my F2 comparison because it’s fairly representative of F1 circuits, and is of a similar length to both COTA and Suzuka. (Silverstone and Suzuka are both 3.6 miles, whilst COTA is 3.4).
Obviously, this is not a direct comparison, and we likely will never get such a thing outside of the digital world, which can still be off what would really happen even if we do someday get that. Because of this, we use the percentage they were off from F1 rather than the actual time difference. It is still not the full picture, but its close enough for government work — and I suspect close enough that a good sim test would be in the ballpark of these results.
So here’s the breakdown (all times are race lap records):
SILVERSTONE
Formula 1 – 1m27.097s
Formula 2 – 1m39.993s
Result: 114.81%
SUZUKA
Formula 1 – 1m30.9s
Super Formula – 1m37.850s
Result: 107.65%
COTA
Formula 1 – 1m36.169s
IndyCar – 1m48.895s
Result – 113.23%
So it is actually possible that an IndyCar is a hair faster than F2 based on this, with Super Formula coming in well ahead of them. This isn’t too surprising — Super Formula is the lightest of the three, and may have higher downforce than F2 (the data is unclear on this). IndyCars are slippier and have the highest top speeds, but lack the downforce of the other two. It’s a testament to IndyCar’s power that it may be the No. 2 in road course lap times.
This also underlines even further something I stated in my previous submission on the matter of these cars: Super Formula got absolutely screwed by their Super License points allocation. But there’s the data to chew on until we hopefully someday get a better comparison.
And if someone wants to calculate the lap time difference between F1 and F2 at other tracks to see how it averages out, I’d love to see that myself, but the number of craps I have to give on this topic, interesting as it is, is still limited and this quick and dirty look at things has already emptied my stock.
PS:
ALBERT PARK
Formula 1 – 1m20.235s
S5000 – 1m40.3696s
Result: 125.09%
STEP IT UP, AUSTRALIA!!!! I know you can do better!
FormulaFox
MP: The Mailbag is an amazing thing. Thanks for all of the research, FF.
Q: I was disappointed to read that Simon Pagenaud is still recovering from his injuries. What are the chances we see him this year? Or, and I hate to say it; have we seen the last of him in IndyCar?
Dale, Richmond, VA
MP: I can’t think of a place where Simon would drive unless he’s cleared and a driver gets fired or injured. There are no seats open he could take for the full season, and I’m not aware of Indy 500 opportunities he’d be able to secure since all of the paying seats are gone or close to gone. The timing for Simon sucks.
Q: Do you have any other information than what has been reported about lawsuit filed against Laguna Seca? How will it affect the IndyCar race?
David Tucker
MP: I do not. Once I get home from Daytona and have a chance to breathe and start to make some calls, I hope to know more.
Q: Do you think IndyCar held off on the hybrid till after the 500 to make sure nothing would ruin the Greatest Spectacle in Racing? Second, why do they test at places that they don’t race? It seems to me it would be beneficial to test the places they race at. Colton Herta said the Homestead Roval isn’t anything like where they race so he wouldn’t read much into lap times.
CAM in LA
MP: Yes, there was no way the series was going to go hybrid at Indy; it needed to have the races prior to Indy run in hybrid specification to work out the bugs as much as possible before the big show.
Time of year and climate is the big determining factor. IndyCar has wanted to do more running at Sebring, as I’m told, but the popular testing track has been heavily booked, so going south to the warmth of Homestead-Miami makes sense, even if it isn’t a circuit — the roval — that lends much to other tracks. At this time of year, it’s either Florida, Arizona, or Southern California, and there aren’t many FIA Grade 1/Grade 2 tracks that fit the safety criteria IndyCar needs in those warmer regions in January and February.
Q: I read the Mailbag every week. There are always letters from IndyCar fans who are complaining about the chassis, engines, the tracks, the style of the car, etc. Maybe I am the only person that feels this way, but I have no complaints about IndyCar at all. I used to like all oval tracks, but now like having different style tracks. I used to cheer for American drivers only, but now respect and cheer for all the great drivers no matter what country they are from. I tried watching the taxi cabs of NASCAR but with all the yellow flags it is like watching a funeral procession snaking its way around the track.
The racing in IndyCar is exciting and I don’t care what engine, chassis, tire or oil they use. Bring on St. Pete and let’s go racing!
Don, Michigan
MP: Good on you, Don. I met a young IndyCar fan — in his 20s — this morning at Daytona and he was of the same mind. He loves the series, knows it has some things to improve or fix, but prefers to focus on the positives, and that’s awesome.