The first third of the 2025 Formula 1 season has brought considerable satisfaction to Racing Bulls. The Faenza-based team currently holds sixth place in the Constructors’ Championship, just behind Williams and tied with Haas, recovering from eighth place at the end of 2024. During the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix, FormulaPassion met with Tim Goss, Chief Technical Officer of the Anglo-Italian team and a major reinforcement after a long experience with the FIA. Although he joined during the late stages of the 2025 project definition, the British engineer has contributed to Racing Bulls’ revival by promoting some internal changes within the team.
The first assessment of 2025
“I started working with the team in October,” Tim Goss begins when asked about the improvements to the Faenza car. “The 2024 car showed good performance initially, but then Haas developed better than us and overtook us towards the end. When I arrived, we struggled to score points and consequently dropped down the standings. This year, we wanted to improve the car, but even more so the team. To do that, we tried to break down any barriers between the departments in Italy and the UK, ensuring we worked together across all disciplines, from aerodynamics to vehicle dynamics, and including track operations.”
The internal reorganization created a better working environment, which benefited the 2025 car project: “We identified our weaknesses to strengthen them for the new year. For example, at the end of last season we qualified well, but our race pace wasn’t exceptional, and that’s something we focused on. Now, in this area, we are at the level of our rivals, if not better.”
“In terms of pure performance, we started well, although in Bahrain we didn’t fully exploit our potential,” Tim Goss continues. “We can definitely improve our agility on curbs, as seen in Miami. There are areas where we can intervene with the setup to achieve that. Clearly, in terms of weekend execution, we collected fewer points in the first two races than we could have. Overall, we try to learn from problems and mistakes without blaming anyone. I believe that is one of our strengths.” – he pointed out.
The tyre factor
The balance between qualifying and race performance has long been a topic in Formula 1, made even more important in an era when gaps on the grid are minimal. The step change from Saturday to Sunday depends on many factors, but one stands out above the others. “Tyres are the biggest influence on the difference in competitiveness between qualifying and race, particularly degradation and overheating,” explains the British engineer.
“If you focus only on the single lap, you want to bring the tyres into the correct operating window and set up the car to be agile and responsive to the driver’s inputs. However, that kind of setup doesn’t protect the rear tyres much from overheating. In 2024, I think we paid too much attention to extracting the maximum from the car, whereas you also need some foresight to preserve the tyres during the race. It’s a compromise; you mustn’t sacrifice qualifying too much. There is still a long way to go, but race after race our mindset is changing,” concludes Tim Goss.
Leave a Reply