Scuderia Ferrari wants to surprise again. The last time the Maranello team did it in 2017 and 2018, leading the way with cars that had great aerodynamic solutions, which were then appreciated even by a wizard like Red Bull’s Adrian Newey. The goal is the same this year, taking advantage of the major regulation changed which forced all the teams to start from a blank sheet the design of the new Formula One cars that we will see at the start of the next championship (Bahrain, 20 March).
Scuderia Ferrari has adopted the same innovative approach that was the basis of the design of the SF70H and the subsequent single-seater, both able to challenge Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes for a good part of the season. And the excellent examples of that time, when the wide tires were reintroduced in F1, forcing the engineers to make an effort of creativity, bodes well for the future: “The 2022 car is the most aggressive, in terms of approach, of the recent ones”, they say in Maranello, as reported by Italian daily newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport.
Ferrari had to dare to try something new in order to hope of further reducing the gap to Mercedes and Red Bull, after the improvements seen in the 2021 Formula 1 season, which coincided with another (very small) change of rules and third place in the Constructors standings ahead of McLaren. Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto wanted the men of the team to face the challenge with a greater mental openness than in the past, exploring more options in research. The result will be seen, they assure, in the single-seater that will be presented between 16 and 18 February and will celebrate the 75th anniversary of the company’s foundation. Compared to 2017, when Ferrari started from scratch, the difference was time: there was a further year of transition (2020) in which to work in advance on the mechanical part of the car of the future.
In Ferrari they evaluated various concepts for the suspension and the arrangement of the internal components, before starting the actual aerodynamic development in the wind tunnel. And even in this second phase there was a totally conservative attitude on the part of the technicians. “We wanted to make sure we didn’t develop the project with preconceived ideas,” Mattia Binotto explained. Nothing was left unturned. Another element that suggests confidence in Maranello. While being aware that Mercedes and Red Bull possess knowledge, tools and methodologies capable of doing the same.
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The new rules set up by Fia and Liberty Media to favor closer duels and overtaking, for the (theoretical) benefit of the show, are actually very restrictive. Leaving little room for imagination. Thus the wings, the chassis and the floor geometry will resemble each other from car to car. But the appearance of the bodywork may be very different, and also very beautiful, according to what is said. The same applies to the arrangement of the internal components. The area around the floor and the shapes of the body will be two key elements in obtaining performance (downforce and balance). And it seems that Ferrari has pushed research a lot in these areas.
The backbone of the department dedicated to design and aerodynamics has remained the same as in that famous 2017, with David Sanchez leading the division and in turn reporting to Enrico Cardile, head of the single-seater project. The stability was desired by Mattia Binotto in the belief that the same men could still do well (the aggressive approach was born then). But there was no shortage of reinforcements: engineers from Red Bull and also from Mercedes. In order to have the vision of the work being done in other teams and understand their strengths and weaknesses. Obviously the competitiveness of Ferrari 2022 will also depend a lot on the new power unit, but that’s another story. The same goes for the use of the new 18-inch Pirelli tires, an unknown factor for everyone. The biggest question mark, however, is linked to the concepts of the current regulation. Very few of the engineers present in Formula 1 teams today have ever worked on “ground effect” cars. At Ferrari there is the super consultant Rory Byrne who brings the experience of the 80s, but the boundaries that can be reached with today’s development are unexplored. Here, perhaps, there is the biggest distinction from 2017 and other recent regulation twists.
