The final fifth place, 47 seconds behind the leader, is certainly not the result Ferrari hoped for before the British weekend but, considering how the weekend went, it is perhaps the best position the Scuderia could aim for. The fast corners troubled the SF-24, which chose to revert definitively to the Imola package to reduce the amount of bouncing in the faster sections and have a more predictable car.
A clear signal of the difficulties Ferrari has faced in recent events, as going back on updates is never a good sign, even though this issue is tied to specific characteristics on a selective track.
Beyond the considerations on the updates, Carlos Sainz expressed satisfaction with the final fifth place, thanks to some good strategic choices at key moments that, while not changing his race, represent a small satisfaction while waiting for better times.
“I think we did our best. I am satisfied with the race because, even if we weren’t fast enough in dry or wet conditions, we got all the pit stop calls right, especially midway through the race when there were slicks on the wet, and I managed to gain podium positions,” said the Spaniard who, in fact, was among the drivers who found the right moment along with the team for both the switch to intermediates and the return to slicks as the track gradually dried.
“We got ourselves in the fight for the podium, but unfortunately, as soon as the track became completely wet or completely dry, we weren’t fast enough.”
“To be honest, I had studied the weather conditions with my engineers, so I was confident ahead of the race that we could make the right choices today. We did a great race. Honestly, all the calls were right, all the tires, all the radio calls,” added the Spaniard, who, along with the team, made the right choice in fitting the hard tire instead of the soft for the last stint, although given the advantage over rivals behind and the performance deficit compared to the top three teams, it did not have a decisive impact on his race.
The regret is not having a faster car to compete for a better result, given that the strategic choices were spot on: “It’s just a shame we weren’t faster in the first part of the race, on the intermediate tire, or at the end because I think we would have been 100% in the fight for the podium or the win. Also, we took a bonus point at the end with the fastest lap,” added the Madrid-born driver who, exploiting the wide gap over Nico Hulkenberg, in the final laps could fit the soft to set the fastest lap of the race, securing the additional point for Ferrari.
Clearly, after such a difficult trilogy for the Scuderia, it is inevitable to draw conclusions about the performance of the new aerodynamic package, discarded for this last race in England after a comparison on Friday with the updates introduced at Imola. The fast corners once again highlighted the bouncing, adding another problem to an aspect in which the SF-24 was already lacking compared to McLaren and Red Bull. Even the Imola package has not completely eliminated the bouncing but has made it more manageable.
“It is clear that the car’s performance with the new updates is not good enough. We have basically gone back to the same car as Imola and since Imola everyone has made improvements, probably adding two-tenths of performance, while we had to go back,” commented the Spaniard, who then emphasized how the fact that this package did not work as expected weighs not only on performance but also on the time spent designing them compared to rivals.
“We have lost two or three months of development, in terms of performance improvements in the wind tunnel or performance we could have achieved in these months. It is clear that recently we have not made the right decisions. But it seems to me that today we went back to basics, to a car that is the same as we had at Imola and from here on we just have to improve. But it is clear that our rivals are a good step ahead of us.” – Carlos Sainz pointed out.
According to Carlos Sainz, the prospects for Hungary can be more hopeful, especially because there will be fewer ultra-fast corners that accentuate the bouncing phenomenon. However, it is clear that the problems will not disappear in a few days and that, until there are new developments designed to combat this defect, even the drivers will have to adapt to the limits and compromises to be made with this version of the SF-24.
“The Hungarian track is slower, although we will probably still have some bouncing in turns 4 and 11, but until there is something better, we might have to live with this bouncing to have better performance in low-speed corners,” Carlos Sainz explained when asked if, on a slower track like the Hungaroring, it made sense to fit the package that debuted in Barcelona and which, according to the drivers, still provided an increase in total downforce.
“On the contrary, on high-speed tracks we might be forced to use the floor of this package [the Imola package], because otherwise the other [the Barcelona package] is unmanageable. For now, in the situation we are in, I trust the team will make the right choices from circuit to circuit until a more solid package arrives, which does not generate bouncing at high speeds and which, at the same time, is good at low speeds. Then we will start thinking about competing again with the top three teams,” added the Spanish driver.
