Following the poor display at the Bahrain International Circuit, Scuderia Ferrari headed to Saudi Arabia focusing on some new components which the Maranello team hoped would help improve its pace at the Jeddah circuit, with the goal of representing a platform for upcoming Formula 1 development too.
The updates brought to the outer portion of the front wing’s upper flap and the area it connects with the endplate will seem familiar, given the fact that we have already seen several other sides take this direction in the start of the 2023 Formula One season.
However, the change made by the Italian side is subtle at this moment: there is only a c-shaped cut-out made in the junction of the upper flap and endplate. No other major changes could be noticed, as Scuderia Ferrari decided to use mainly the same components from the winter pre-season testing session and round of the new championship in Sakhir.
This first update should provide for a better outwash effect as compared to the no cut-out version, but what is certain is that Ferrari will bring a more comprehensive specification in the next few weeks, which will most likely include more than just the last flap, taking into consideration the effort other teams have gone to when identifying the ideal options for this component.
The Maranello team also tested a new floor specification during the free practice session for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, that included a shape for the forward cut-out altered and a raised kickup introduced ahead of the rear tyre where the floor edge tapers toward it. The Italian side collected a lot of data on Friday in Saudi Arabia, but then decided not to use it for the rest of the Jeddah weekend. We will now see if the Maranello team brings this solution for the Australian Grand Prix or whether the floor version was just something that the Italian side wanted to trial in real track conditions to evaluate a possible new development direction.
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Ferrari had already trialled a lower downforce rear wing in Sakhir during the Bahrain race weekend, but opted to return to its double pillar and higher downforce variant for the qualifying session and the main event on Sunday. Yet the Maranello team used it in the second round of the season, at the Jeddah circuit, with the goal of trimming downforce and drag levels on the SF-23 challenger.
The lower downforce rear wing version includes a swan neck mono pillar structure, which is also connected to the DRS pod. The single versus double pillar specification represents a development goal that all the teams have been studying during the last few seasons, such are the subtleties in the trade-off between the two options in terms of aero gains, weight and flexion.
In is interesting to note that the rear wing seen on the SF-23 single-seater featured other minor updates with the goal of reducing drag, with the profile of the spoon-shaped mainplane slightly changed, along with the chord of the upper flap. At the same time, the shape of the tip section has been changed to create more of a sawn-off finish, in a similar manner to a technical solution seen on the Alfa Romeo challenger in 2022 (inset).
Also worth pointing out is that Ferrari has introduced the teardrop-shaped flap pivots which Fred Vasseur’s Alfa Romeo used during the previous Formula 1 championship, instead of testing the barrel-style ones which the Maranello team’s higher downforce wing employs.
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