When a driver says, “Thank you to the team and everyone back at the factory”, It sounds like a standard post-race courtesy. In reality they’re referring to over 1,000 people.
Pit crew
The pit lane houses roughly 20 anonymous mechanics hidden behind fireproof visors, they preform tire changes in around two seconds. The distribution of labor is as follows:
- Wheel Gunners: Use high power air tools to unscrew and tighten the wheel bolts.
- Tire Changers: Pull the hot used rubber off the car replacing them with fresh tires.
- Jack Operators: Lift and lower the heavy car at the front and back.
A second of delay can ruin a driver’s entire race. The fastest pit stop ever recorded belongs to Mclaren, specifically Lando Norris in an astonishing 1.80 seconds at the Qatar Grand Prix in 2023.
Garage Mechanics
Long before Sunday’s race, these mechanics are working long hours in the garage. If a driver crashes during a practice session, these are the people who stay up all night to rebuild the car. They handle things such as engine or suspension swaps. Even something simple as one loose bolt can make the car not even start come race day or highly dangerous to be on track.
Race Engineers
Race engineers are the only allowed contact the driver has when in the car so their job is highly crucial not to mess up. They are some of the best of the best, working at a level just a step down from those at NASA. The engineer sits on the pit wall, watching numbers like engine temps, brake wear, and tire life. They then turn all that into calm instructions to relay back to their drivers.
Strategists
Sitting right next to the engineers are the strategists. These are data scientists who run thousands of computer simulations to predict weather changes, track traffic, and tire life. A driver’s speed means absolutely nothing if the strategy team miscalculates a pit window.
Factory Engineers
The largest group of people never actually travels to the track. Back at the home base, hundreds of aerodynamicists spend thousands of hours testing car shapes in wind tunnels to improve airflow.
So now you know what all that money is going towards.
Leave a Reply