The increase in brake force is not something you would automatically expect from the way in which F1 cars are getting quicker this year.

For it sounds logical to suggest that a car that goes slower in a straightline and takes corners quicker would actually need less braking – not more. It would surely only make sense for braking force to go up if the cars were faster on the straights and slower in the corners; so needed to scrub off more speed.

But car dynamics can be quite complicated, and it is the increase in grip this year – through both wider tyres and downforce – that is key here. For it means drivers will be able to brake harder and later.

There could be further knock-on consequences too from the faster cars – because now with some corners flat-out, drivers will be arriving at subsequent turns much faster than they were before. Piccoli explains: "We have seen on the simulation that some corners where cars were slowing down a bit – like in a sequence where you had a first turn and then a second one (such as Turns 2/3 at Silverstone) – the car used to slow down in the first corner so have reduced speed when it entered the second one.

"Certainly some braking distances will be shorter, but we still have to understand if the braking is comparable to before," he said. "If you arrive at a corner having not slowed down the car for an earlier turn, then the second one is becoming heavier. So the speed will be a lot higher than before, and in the end the braking distance could be a lot higher and the power going on the brakes will be higher.

For 2017, despite the predicted increase in forces, some teams have elected not to make the jump up to 32mm – feeling that the extra 150 grammes of weight that comes with the larger disc is not worth it. It was interesting that towards the end of last year, Mercedes ran a lot of brake experiments in free practice sessions with a view to 2017 design.

Piccoli explains: "Right now, we have teams that have decided to go ahead with the 28mm disc, and teams that decided to move to the 32mm at the rear. It is certainly related to the brakes and braking performance, but that is not the only reason.

"In the past years, brakes have also been used to control the temperature of the tyres, so I think these two choices lead also a different way of controlling the temperature on the rear. We will see. "It is now a choice that has been done in terms of caliper design. Anyone that decided to go to the 32mm can move down to the 28mm if needed, you can always run a thinner disc. But it will be more difficult for whoever decided to stay on a 28mm to move to a 32mm without changing the caliper."

Though McLaren's performance has been largely determined in recent years by Honda's struggle to get on terms with rival engine manufacturers, Alonso believes it will be how well his team masters the new aerodynamics that decides 2017 form rather than power output.

"Let's say that Mercedes, the top power, will be difficult to reach, we know that - not for us, but for everyone," Alonso said. "But I think we can be close enough that we can fight. "I'm 100 percent confident we will reach the power that we want to reach, on aerodynamics I think it is more of a question mark."

"The rules change which will mix things a little bit. There is the progress that Honda made this year which I think is very positive and gives me confidence for next year as well.

"I'm really looking forward to Australia in March. Last year it was 'OK, hopefully in Australia everything will change', but there are so many things that had to change that you have hope, but it's a big hope.

Initially there was zero balance shift at eight and four car lengths separation, which does indeed give ground for optimism that cars could run closer. This minimal balance shift at these separations, combined with just a modest initial decline in total downforce, and the increased mechanical grip of the 2017 cars, should make things easier for the following driver as he first starts to close on the car in front. However, the subsequent forwards balance shift at closer separations is the complete opposite of what we have become used to and is an intriguing and – if it translates to reality on track – a slightly worrying response for the closer separations.

The plot lines in Figure 8 showing the front and rear downforce changes with car separation confirm the forwards balance shift, with front and rear downforce declining similarly and modestly from eight to four car lengths separations, but at closer separations both ends declined further, but rear downforce declined much more. Translating the relative data in the graph to absolute numbers, what we saw on our model was the balance figure change to about 50 per cent front at two cars’ separation, 55 percent front at one car’s separation and about 61 per cent front at half a car’s separation, compared to the 45 per cent front figure on our model in isolation and at eight and four car lengths’ separation.

If this were to transfer out on to the track, what we could see in 2017 when cars try to run close together in line astern through ‘aero speed’ corners is that the following car might initially be able to get closer more comfortably than in previous configurations but then, as it closed more, become prone to aerodynamic oversteer. This may simply manifest itself as just that, oversteer. But could it be that drivers will risk spinning off if they get too close to the car in front?

although it might simply change the reason for the fact that the underlying problem, at least in part, remains!