Craig Scarborough not convinced by Ferrari's SF-24: "A step behind everyone else"

Despite Frederic Vasseur speaking of a car that is “95% new” compared to the previous season, Ferrari has avoided talking about a revolution at all costs. The new SF24 is presented as an evolution of the SF23, but according to the initial analyses by experts, no one has been particularly impressed by the solutions adopted for the 2024 car, especially when compared to what Aston Martin and Mercedes have showcased.

One of these experts is Craig Scarborough, a renowned English analyst, who, speaking on Peter Windsor’s YouTube channel, even referred to the car as being a year old at first glance: “It’s a radical evolution from last year, but the car produced this year seems like a 2023 car to me.” – he pointed out.

“It doesn’t seem like they’ve pushed things to the extreme like everyone else. My initial hypothesis is that perhaps this is not the step forward that Ferrari was looking for. We can’t judge it at this stage, but I’m a bit disappointed with what we’ve seen on the SF-24.” – the freelance journalist\illustrator added.

Nevertheless, Craig Scarborough has not issued a definitive verdict: “There are changes to the floor that we can’t see. What we can see is the secondary effect of what they’ve done with the sidepods. They may have found a lot of performance there, making the floor work better.”

One critical aspect of the SF23 was tire management, with a car that was very fast in qualifying but suffered significantly from degradation in races: “The interesting aspect is that Ferrari hasn’t substantially modified the outer parts of the front and rear suspensions. There are no major geometric changes to the suspensions. Hopefully, they have found other ways to make the tires work better, especially in races.” – he continued.

The new nose and sidepods of the SF24 are not convincing
“Ferrari has chosen a wider nose,” Craig Scarborough continues, discussing the front area of the new red car. “I thought this year they would shape the nose more, trying to achieve a greater aerodynamic effect. I believe many teams are making the nose much flatter and wider to achieve optimal performance in the event of an accident. This plays with the pressure where the nose meets the leading edge of the front wing. This is an aspect that Red Bull has effectively resolved, and Ferrari has moved slightly in that direction.”

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Finally, a focus on the sidepods, another area where, according to the English analyst, Ferrari is lacking compared to the competition: “Ferrari hasn’t pushed to the extreme, and I don’t see why they shouldn’t. So, you think, ‘What do they have in mind? Why aren’t they playing along? It’s not for cooling because nowadays the volume of the sidepods is much larger than necessary. Once again, you get the feeling that Ferrari is a step behind everyone else.”

Already last year, Ferrari did significant work in that area, replacing the “bathtub” sidepods to align with the competition, with Red Bull setting the example in this regard: “As we saw with Aston Martin, the competition is becoming even more extreme in the shapes and volumes used in these areas. I’m skeptical that Ferrari thinks it can aim for championships with this car because it seems like they’ll launch it, use it for the first few races, and then probably update it. That’s not how you win championships. You have to be ready for the first race, especially if you’re competing against Red Bull, and you can expect a Mercedes resurgence. McLaren looks strong. Aston Martin is there or thereabouts.” – Craig Scarborough concluded.

Given the RB20’s superiority, Ferrari can and must at least match the other three top teams: “Depending on the level of Red Bull’s superiority, I don’t see why Ferrari can’t be competitive with its rivals. But I don’t know if they have closed the gap with Red Bull to the necessary extent.”