Scuderia Ferrari is in serious trouble. Without the necessary references, Formula 1 becomes even more complicated than it already is. The Italian side had a specific need for the final free practice session at the 4.259-kilometre Circuit Zandvoort: to validate the SF-24 setup changes studied in the simulator overnight. However, this was not possible because Logan Sargeant decided to crash into the barriers at turns 4-5. The result? The session was halted until three minutes before the end, as the marshals took considerable time to repair the barriers almost destroyed by the Williams driver.
Ferrari will therefore have to make some choices. With limited data available, they need to choose a setup path that, of course, cannot be changed later due to parc fermé regulations. The Maranello team’s weekend was already a big mess, but with Carlos Sainz’s absence in FP2 due to a transmission issue and today’s stoppage caused by the Williams crash, the scenario has become even more hostile. At least it seems that the rain might give a break, according to the forecast for qualifying. The track is expected to start wet but should gradually dry out.
An important factor will be the ability of the F1 teams to manage the warm-up procedure of the tires. The goal is to activate the compounds in order to achieve the maximum grip they can offer. Failure to do so means losing the chance to push, as the performance offered by the Pirelli tires remains partially locked. Ferrari, especially with Charles Leclerc, has shown that the Italian team has made progress in this area. Just think of the starting position achieved at the Belgian Grand Prix, where the Monegasque driver, thanks to Max Verstappen’s penalty, even started from pole position.
Now let’s take a detailed look at how the Qualifying session for the Dutch Grand Prix unfolded for Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc.
Inside the Ferrari garage, everything is ready. The sun is shining, and everything seems to be working optimally. The two Ferrari drivers are in the SF-24 cars, waiting for the green flag. This first part of qualifying will be crucial in understanding whether the setup is correct and if the balance will allow the Ferraris to perform at their best. The time has come to hit the track. Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc leave the pit lane, fitted with a set of red-banded Pirelli tires. The race engineers urge them to manage the warm-up as best as possible.
After setting aside the tire activation, they switch to race mode and start pushing. Charles encounters heavy traffic, as expected given his position on track, while Carlos is luckier in this regard. Nevertheless, Leclerc delivers the better performance. Overall, the handling of the SF-24 doesn’t seem too bad, though it needs some adjustment. After this first attempt, both Ferrari drivers ask for and receive an increase in front-end downforce to better balance the car.
Apparently, there’s a bit of understeer, especially in Sector 2, which limits the rotation of the Italian cars in the slower corners. Meanwhile, oversteer is noticeable on exit. Turns 8 and 9 remain difficult to navigate. At this stage, Sainz is struggling more. The Spaniard hasn’t had much track time, and the right reference points are missing. Additionally, he made a few driving errors that certainly didn’t help. With only a few minutes left in Q1, both Ferrari drivers are forced to return to the track.
They do so on new Soft tires for this second run, aiming to improve their times. Leclerc needs to improve, but the one really at risk is his Maranello teammate. There’s no room for mistakes. Fortunately, the Spaniard delivers a solid performance and places himself in the top 5. The same goes for Leclerc, who matches his teammate’s time. Ferrari makes it through the cut, but as we’ve easily seen, qualifying for the Dutch Grand Prix will not be a walk in the park for the Scuderia.
The comment from Charles at the end of the first part of the qualifying session is concerning. The Ferrari driver opened up on the radio, and in addition to complaining about the traffic, which is always a problem on this track, he vented quite a bit to his race engineer Bryan Bozzi about the performance of his SF-24. Leclerc didn’t understand what was happening, stating that despite various handling tests, his car was sliding all over the place. Especially in the first sector, there was no way to achieve a good result. It seems that activation in the first part of the lap was not so easy to achieve.
We move on to Q2. Ferrari is still on track among the first, always on Soft tires. Riccardi Adami and Bryan Bozzi try to provide as much assistance as possible to the Ferrari drivers, regarding the mappings to use and the trajectories to take to optimize the drivability of the SF-24. After warming up the tires, they go out again. In this case, the tires are used to try to find a better feeling in the first sector, which is limiting performance. The two Ferraris return to the garage, where they are fitted with a brand-new set of red-banded Pirelli tires. Additional advice arrives to improve the rotation of the cars.
The Ferrari drivers’ attempt is successful, even though the lap times are not exceptional. Undoubtedly, the corner entry phase seems slightly improved, although there is still a bit of oversteer on exit. There is a lot of talk about the front-end load configuration, which is crucial at this stage of qualifying. Minor adjustments are made to balance the car, new tires (still Soft), a brief pause, and then back on the Dutch asphalt for the final part of Q2. It must be said that the two Ferrari drivers are really giving their all with a limited car.
Three minutes left in the session. The usual careful tire activation, maybe this time pushing a bit more on the outlap. Meanwhile, the wind picks up and the sun disappears. Sainz gives it his all, but his performance is not enough to make the cut. Unfortunate, as he encounters traffic in the middle sector, which undoubtedly disrupts him. Unfortunately, he finishes with the 11th time. In contrast, his teammate puts together a really good lap, just over a tenth off the McLarens. The Monegasque driver makes it to Q3, fortunately.
The moment of truth has arrived. The time to get really serious presents itself to the only remaining Ferrari driver. Precision in driving, maximum concentration, and perfect tire activation will be the keys to delivering his best. Charles is talking with some technicians in the garage while observing the telemetry to understand where he can still “shave” some time off his performance. The engine of his SF-24 fires up.
For this first attempt, his Ferrari is on used tires. These are the red-banded Pirellis used in the previous session. During the outlap, Charles works hard to warm up the tires as best as possible, once again pushing more on the outlap. It seems the wind has calmed down compared to before. This lap by Leclerc serves primarily to increase his feeling with the car and to finalize some beneficial trajectories to improve the car’s performance. The lap is fairly clean, although he’s 6 tenths off the best performance set by Lando Norris, who had new tires.
Bryan Bozzi provides him with all the necessary details and pumps him up a bit for the next attempt, the one that really counts. Charles Leclerc returns to the pits for a brief stop, during which his mechanics fit the last available set of new Soft tires. Track position will be important, as will tire activation. For this reason, once back on track, car number 16 carefully warms up before switching to push mode on the last corner of the track. The tension is high because the extra that the Monegasque driver can offer will matter a lot.
Bryan Bozzi suggests using Lando Norris’s racing line in turn 1, tight on entry and wide on exit. The Monegasque driver’s lap is not great and earns him 6th place. Several corrections were needed between the first and second sectors. At the end of the lap, Charles opens up on the radio, complaining that the tires were “very difficult to manage.” Indeed, his SF-24 seemed rather unstable. It’s a shame because something better could have been achieved. That said, one final consideration: Ferrari gave it their all with a car far from the top in the Netherlands. The 9-tenths gap to Lando Norris proves it.
