Formula 1: Car reveal dates and season expectations

It’s February! Formula 1’s motors are starting to fire.  Car Reveals are right around the corner and testing at the end of the month. What will this season bring?

Formula 1 teams are starting to release the unveil date for their 2018 entries for the upcoming season. All the car release fanfare culminates at the end of the month with testing starting on the 26^th at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in Spain.

The offseason has been long and full of rumor, driver changes and plenty hype around the potential return of Robert Kubica (which won’t happen this year it seems).

I always look forward to the team’s cars being revealed to see what innovative solutions the teams come up with to meet specifications. Also, new liveries are revealed including the whole new Alfa Romeo scheme on the Sauber.  The new partnership between Sauber and Alfa Romeo is seen by some as a signal that Ferrari won’t really be leaving the sport as they have been threatening.

Below are the confirmed reveal dates according to the official Formula 1 Twitter here.

• Williams: Feb 15
• Sauber: Feb 20
• Renault: Feb 20
• Mercedes AMG: Feb 22
• Ferrari: Feb 22
• McLaren: Feb 23 (now powered by Renault)
• Toro Rosso: Feb 26

These 7 are all we have as of the time of this writing, I will update as dates roll in.

What happened last season?

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The 2017 season was mostly dominated by Mercedes AMG Petronas. Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas seemed to alternate on and off the top step of the podium and won both the constructors and drivers championship as a result.

McLaren continued its struggle with unreliable (fires, leaks) Honda power units but when they did cross the finish line, the chassis seemed to make up for lack of power and provide good results.

McLaren was so positive the car was uncompetitive they allowed Fernando Alonso to skip the Monaco GP for the Indy 500.  Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen retired from six races but also had some wins, Ricciardio didn’t have the reliability problems and also had a win in Azerbaijan.

 What to look for this season in a nutshell.

The world of F1 is waiting to see how the teams will incorporate the very controversial new halo head protection. Some of the biggest changes though will not be visible to fans right away, the effects of new tire compounds, fewer engines per season and simpler grid penalties won’t be seen until the season starts.

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As far as teams, Red Bull is now partnered with Aston Martin for power units.  The biggest changes came from McLaren and Toro Rosso.  McLaren dropped the Honda power units in favor of Renault while sending the Honda power units to Toro Rosso.   Ferrari has been threatening to pull out of the sport over rule changes and the Saubers changed from blue to red.  This isn’t all the changes coming up but that is for another post.