Sakhir in the wet; not exactly a familiar sight. However, there are some people out there, most likely including most of the people reading this, who want to try a wet race or time trial session in the desert on F1 2020.
To be fair, at the 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix there was actually a risk of rain. Unfortunately, it didn’t fall during any of the actual sessions, but it’s not quite as unlikely as it sounds.
If you’re looking to tame the desert in the wet, then here’s the setup for you.
Aerodynamics
For your wing settings, it’s important not to go too crazy and pile on the wing downforce. This is because, whether in the rain or not, Sakhir is dominated by its straights.
I’ve found that running 3-9 wings gives plenty of grip where it’s needed without having you lag too far behind on the straights themselves.
Transmission
An on-throttle transmission setting of 50% is very beneficial here, especially in the wet. This is because it allows you to lay down the power with less chance of the car kicking out at you when you do so.
For the off-throttle differential, I’d go with 60%. You don’t need to go any higher than this to ensure mid-corner stability, and running it this low helps to rotate the car at lower speeds.
Suspension Geometry
Your camber and toe settings will be fairly standard around here, even though a wet Bahrain is a rather unique experience.
For the camber, -2.50 and -1.00 are the best options to ensure stability throughout the corners. The performance cost in Bahrain of running such low levels of camber is negligible.
For your toe settings, 0.05 on the fronts along with 0.20 on the rears gives great balance and performance in the longer corners.
Suspension
As ever in the wet, a soft suspension setup combined with stiff anti-roll bars and a high ride height are the order of the day.
For the suspension itself, 2-4 should do the trick. These are low enough that the car won’t become too skittish, but high enough that it’s not sluggish instead.
Stiff anti-roll bars tend to help a lot in the wet as roll can be a major issue in these conditions. Therefore, I recommend that you run 7-9 for your front and rear anti-roll bars.
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When it comes to ride height, the higher the setting the easier to drive the car becomes, especially in the wet. Therefore, 9-11 is the best way to go when the rain hits the sand.
Brakes
Your own personal braking preferences should determine your brake settings at every circuit in every circumstance. I tend to prefer 100% brake pressure with 50% brake bias, but this doesn’t suit everyone. You do you.
Tyres
Tyre pressure need to be reduced for a wet track. This is because overly high-pressure tyres will lead to a car which is unstable and unpredictable as it will respond more sharply to various forces acting upon it.
As such, 22.2psi for the fronts with 19.5psi on the rears is my suggestion.
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A wet race in Bahrain would be an absolute treat to behold, as unlikely as it is. However, you can get a taste of the experience by creating a wet race at Sakhir in F1 2020.
When you do so, this setup will make sure that your experience is as fun as it should be.
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