Force India‘s new recruit Esteban Ocon has no doubts that the 2017 cars will appeal to the fans but says the increase in performance could prove detrimental to racing.
The Frenchman views the anticipated increase in performance, thanks to improved downforce, as something which could render overtaking very problematic.
“I think from the look, it’s going to be awesome,” Ocon told Motorsport.com.
“I think people lost a bit of interest when the cars started to be ugly in 2014, as the look makes a lot of difference to people.
“And also the sound was not great. The sound will still be poor – from my side I preferred it when it was an atmospheric engine.”
Formula 1’s regulation overhaul puts the onus on aerodynamics with additional downforce generated by bigger wings.
Coupled with larger tyres, the mix will produce faster cornering speeds and reduced lap times by an estimated average of about five seconds.
“But looking at it, it’s going to be mega impressive now in corners, it’s going to be so quick,” Ocon added.
“The camera will see a speed that we saw only in qualifying, now we will see it all the time.
“But then for the races it’s not going to be interesting, it’s going to be harder to overtake, and there’s going to be less opportunities.”
With anticipated increased G-forces, drivers will be put to the task physically. Ocon has fine-tuned his personal training accordingly.
“The days are mega, mega long. It’s from 9am to 9pm, double the intensity of the work, to put muscle on, to put weight on.
“The cars are going to be so hard to drive that this will be needed.”
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