F1, here is the new Alfa Romeo: “A big step forward”

The calling card: “Aggressive above and below the skin”. Black and red, very little white. L’Alfa Romeo Sauber, which finished the 2022 season in sixth constructor’s place, is the first “real” car presented so far. Not simply a livery, however interesting. It was unveiled in Zurich and it’s called C43, is the last with the sponsorship of the Biscione. Not only the car is new, but also the team organization: Alessandro Good students49 years old, from Umbria, already in the group and from this year team representative, will have a leading role but with functions divided with Xevi Pujolarchief of track engineers, e Beat Zenderthe sporting director. He will represent the team at meetings with the FIA, F1, press and sponsors. Everyone reports to the former team principal, now CEO, Andreas Seidl.

Monchaux: “Made a big step forward”

The works on the car, which is powered by Ferrari, were supervised by the technical director Jan Monchaux who didn’t hide his pride: “It should be faster. Fast and reliable. The new single-seater is a big step forward for those who look at it from the outside, it’s very different. We took a big step forward, especially from the point of view of aerodynamics, which is a natural evolution of the 2022 car, but also of what we’ve seen from our rivals, as is normal.”

The major interventions are in fact aerodynamic: via the false bottom, sloping sides towards the sidewalk enter. Inclined rather than horizontal radiators. The radiator vents recall those of the Ferrari: wide and narrow to let the air flow to the bottom. Nine flow diverters. The weight has been further decreased: last year her mother was the only one able to reach the weight limit, this year she will have to add ballast to the pilots, Valtteri Bottas and Guanyu Zhouto reach the 798 kilos required.

Bottas’ new look

The Finn, ex Mercedes, 10th last year, seemed just as aggressive as the car, with a new look too: hair shaved at the temples and longer at the nape, a thick mustache and a muscular mass that seems to have increased after the long bicycle rides in Australia and New Zealand. He said: “The C43 is finally here and I can’t wait to take it to the track. I really like our new livery. I think it’s stunning and represents a nice evolution compared to last year’s one. With the team we experienced a first interesting season, we’ve made some pretty solid progress together and now there’s only one direction to go: to keep getting better.Obviously there’s still work to do and we have things to improve, but I’m convinced we also have the cards in rule to aim for even more important results this year. I can’t wait to get back to racing, I’m energized and eager to start the new season”.

Zhou: “Ready to attack”

So is his partner, the Chinese Zhou, 23, in his second year in F1 and Alfa Sauber: “I’m happy to see the C43 finally unveiled after all the behind-the-scenes work that has been done in recent months. I think that we’re sporting a beautiful new design for 2023, and I’m looking forward to driving the car in Barcelona in the next few days before starting the season with winter testing in Bahrain Last year the team made me feel at home from the start, welcoming me and giving me time to learn and improve. The expectations for this year are definitely higher. I’m ready to attack.”