Your guide to the pre-season track session at Barcelona

With less than a month to go until the opening race of the season, preparations really are starting to turn up a notch this week as we descend on Barcelona for the pre-season track session.

Ahead of the three-day event, we’ve put together a handy little guide so you know what to expect.

In 2022 there will be two pre-season events which all teams will participate in. From Wednesday this week, we begin three days of running at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya for the pre-season track session, before the Official Pre-Season Test commences at the Bahrain International Circuit on March 10.

These days will allow each of the 10 teams to check every aspect of their cars, as well as trial different programmes and set-ups in the lead up to the season opener.

Both circuits feature an array of low, medium and high speed corners and both have long straights, making them the perfect facilities to test all aspects of the 2022 challengers, including the FW44.

For us at Williams Racing, it will be a chance to fully flex the muscles of our new machine, and a first real opportunity for Nicholas Latifi and Alex Albon to get to grips with their cars. Despite thousands of miles put into the simulator, the best feeling of the car the pair will get will be in these sessions.

Here’s how we will shape up in Barcelona:

Wed AM: NL6

Wed PM: AA23

Thurs AM: AA23

Thurs PM: NL6

Fri AM: NL6

Fri PM: AA23

Before flying out to Spain, we caught up with our Head of Vehicle Performance, Dave Robson, who said: “The FW44 is very different to previous cars, both in appearance and under the skin, and this will require a fresh approach.

“Our objectives in Barcelona are to understand the new car and to learn how to optimise it for the range of tracks that we will visit this season.

“We will also explore the performance potential of the new aerodynamic package and begin the key process of correlating the on-track performance to the wind tunnel predictions.

“We are quite accustomed to testing in Barcelona in February and we know that the overall performance of the car in these conditions is not very representative of most circuits that we will encounter over the next nine months.

“Therefore, we will be looking to understand the potential of the car and how it responds to changes that we make, gathering data and knowledge that we can call upon during the season.

“As well as the new car and Pirelli tyres, we also welcome Alex Albon to the team. Alex has been working with his engineers for many weeks now and has settled in very well but there is no substitute for time in the real car and we are very much looking forward to seeing him in action, working closely with Nicholas and developing the crucial bond with the team.”

As Dave alluded to, timings in pre-season should always be taken with a pinch of salt, meaning we’ll only get a real sense of the 2022 pecking order in the first qualifying session of the year at the Bahrain Grand Prix.

In pre-season, lap times can be remarkably different throughout the sessions thanks to many variables, such as tyre compounds, fuel loads and set-ups. As sessions aren’t held under exact Grand Prix conditions, certain restrictions do not apply. For example, DRS can be activated anywhere on the lap which would allow some drivers to shoot for the stars and top the time sheets with a lap time vastly different to everyone else.

Similarly, the cars you see on track at these sessions could end up being completely different to those you see line up on the grid for the first race of the year. Upgrades and changes are a given in pre-season as the constructors look to get the most out of their car.

It’s Nicky’s third pre-season with the team and the Canadian is looking forward to getting more minutes behind the wheel of his new ride, saying: "After our filming day at Silverstone last week, I’m even more excited to get to Barcelona.

“I’m looking forward to getting a proper measure of the FW44 and what it’s capable of, as well as understand how it differs to the previous F1 cars I’ve driven.

“The goal when we get on track in Barcelona is to learn the car and be prepared as much as possible for the Official Pre-Season Test in Bahrain and the first Grand Prix.

“It will be nice to finally put the new car through its paces and see all the hard work everyone at the factory has been doing over the winter."

As for Alex, it’s not only important to get to grips with the all new car, but it will also be key to get a better understanding inside his new environment, with the Thai driver excited for the challenge ahead: "Barcelona will be our first proper track session, so it will be interesting to see how the new car performs around Circuit de Catalunya, as the new technical regulations mean we don’t have many reference points.

“Across the three days, we’ll be focused on data gathering and getting a feeling for the FW44, which means we’ll need to be very efficient with our time to maximise the mileage we have.

“From my side, I’m really looking forward to getting back out on track and familiarising myself with the car."

The Barcelona track session will not be broadcast live so updates from your usual sources will be a little restricted, whereas the Bahrain test will be broadcast in its entirety.

Live timing will not be deployed on F1’s platforms in Barcelona, but media and broadcasters will be allowed in the paddock so it will not be as secret an event as it may sound.

Don’t worry, we’ll be keeping our fans in the loop across all of our digital channels throughout the three days of running at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, so make sure you check back right here, and on our socials, to get the best sense of how Nicky and Alex are getting on in Spain.