The 'major change' for 2023 Alfa Romeo as F1 team aims higher

F1

In the final year of its F1 partnership with Sauber, Alfa Romeo has unveiled its 2023 car with extensive modifications, aimed at improving on the performance that saw it finish sixth in last year's constructors' championship

2023 Alfa Romeo Formula 1 car

Sauber

Alfa Romeo has unveiled a new red and black livery on the new C43 as the Italian manufacturer heads into its final year as a partner of the Sauber organisation.

The team unveiled a show car at an event in Switzerland as well as releasing CGI images. The real C43 will take to the track for the first time at a filming day in Barcelona on Friday.

Alfa’s deal with Sauber began as straight sponsorship in 2018, and the following year the Italian manufacturer took over the name of the car.

However with Audi having already bought an initial stake in the Swiss outfit ahead of the transition to its entry into the sport in 2026 the Alfa deal became untenable, and thus will conclude at the end of this year.

The team is expected to revert to the Sauber chassis name for the interim seasons in 2024 and 2025.

3 2023 Alfa Romeo Formula 1 car

Alfa Romeo’s focus has been on redesigning the rear end of the car

Sauber

Alfa Romeo finished sixth in last year’s World Championship despite a generally inconsistent car and ongoing reliability issues that were attributable to both the team and engine partner Ferrari.

“This car is an evolution of last year, reflecting the new regulations and introducing major changes in the areas where we found improvements to be needed,” said technical director Jan Monchaux.

“I hope it’s going to be quicker than the successful car we had last year, that’s what matters most, and more reliable as well – we have put a lot of effort in this direction.

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“Now, it’s time to get to the track and see how this car performs. I’m happy to get back to racing and I’m confident there will be much more to come from us soon.”

The floor tweaks designed to end porpoising, which include raising the side edges by 15mm, have been a key focus, as they have for all F1 teams.

“We focused our effort mainly on getting around the new regs on the floor because it’s a 15mm change on the floor. But it’s quite a departure, which dragged a lot of effort from our side.”

Sauber used Ferrari customer gearboxes for many years, but in a strategic move built its own for the first season of the new regulations in 2022.

Monchaux concedes that the team could have done a better job and has thus made a revised gearbox as well as new rear suspension, and changed the cooling layout, which was a weakness last year.

“We identified quite early that the biggest area where we wanted to focus was the rear end of the car, so we did a completely new rear end, new gearbox, new rear suspension, bodywork, cooler installation, and that’s where also the car will be most different visibly for people outside, which was for us a needed step to also address some of the weakness we’ve been analysing last season.”

2 2023 Alfa Romeo Formula 1 car

Last year no one really knew what to expect with the first cars built to the new regulations, and teams were caught out by porpoising.

“There are still a lot of unknowns, but it’s different unknowns!” said Monchaux. “So on the pure topic of porpoising, I think the change of regulation and all the knowledge we built up during the year will make it less of an issue.

“And I’m hoping it will not be there at all. We’ll see in a couple of days. But there are still a lot of unknowns.”

“There’s only one direction to follow: up, higher, and better”

Valtteri Bottas spoke of the team’s potential to improve on last year, where Alfa Romeo finished sixth in the constructors’ championship, level on points with Aston Martin.

“It’s been an interesting first season with the team, we made some pretty solid progress together, and now there’s only one direction to follow: up, higher, and better,” he said.

“There is obviously still work to do and things to improve, but I am confident we have it in ourselves to aim for even higher results this year. I cannot wait to go back to racing, I am fully charged and eager to get the new season started.”

Regarding the team’s potential form he said: “Obviously I’ve been getting updates always like how things are going, what is new and very much involved in that.

“And I can’t wait to try it, see how it feels. We all have big hopes for the season. But you never know how innovative other teams have been.”

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Zhou Guanyu is heading into his second year with the team, and concedes that he has to raise his sights.

“Last year, the team made me feel at home from the very start, welcoming me and giving me time to learn and improve,” he said.

“The expectation for this year is definitely higher, and I will carry all the experience from my rookie season into 2023. I’m excited for what’s coming, and I’m fully ready to attack.”

“So far obviously, for my side, I’ve been working together closely in the simulator already for the season. Everything looks quite promising, especially compared to last year to improve all the weaknesses that we had.”

Former McLaren team principal Andreas Seidl has joined to help build up the organisation and prepare the ground for Audi’s arrival, while managing director Alessandro Alunni Bravi will have the role of team representative and hold the reins on race weekends.

Alunni Bravi conceded that the team has a lot to do as it tries to improve its on track form while building towards the Audi era.

“Bringing a car to life is a long process which touches every department of a racing team, therefore it’s a moment of great pride to see it unveiled today,” he said.

“Our new car is the results of months of work, but today is just the beginning of a journey. We need to keep working hard, with humility and dedication, to bring performance to the track.

“Everyone in the team is committed to this target and I am confident we will reap the rewards of our work.”