Scuderia Ferrari leaves Saudi Arabia with the status of fourth force. A bitter verdict, which took even the Maranello team by surprise, as confirmed by Carlos Sainz. “Yes, I’m surprised – admitted the Spaniard – because after Friday I thought we’d be able to confirm ourselves as second force, but the last race stint with the hard tires proved that we have a lot of work to do”.
Jeddah had to confirm how many and which of the problems that emerged in Bahrain were linked to the Sakhir track, and how many are instead linked to the SF-23 project. The answer was clear.
It is true that Charles Leclerc showed a good pace in the first stint of the race (with the soft tyres), but the benefits were also linked to the (correct) choice to start with the softer compound against opponents who started off with the mediums. This gave Charles Leclerc and the men in red a bit of false hope, but once they switched to hards, the problems started. The first was the moment in which the safety car entered the track, or rather two laps after the Monegasque’s pit stop, who thus lost two positions being passed by Lewis Hamilton and George Russell.
But it was above all the pace with the hards that made it clear there was nothing to be done against Aston Martin and Mercedes in Jeddah. Frederic Vasseur pointed his finger at the bad performance of the single-seater with the harder compound, emphasizing the positive pace of the single-seater seen in qualifying on Saturday.
However, there are two evaluations to be made. The first is that the points for the world rankings, which in the end are what count, are awarded on Sunday, so this is where efforts should be directed. The second is that the pace with the harder compounds is a ultimate test of the competitiveness of a project. Going wrong with the hard tires is not the problem in itself, but the effect of a weakness of the single-seater.
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Obviously there was no degradation in Jeddah, the asphalt is not that of Bahrain and no one accused such problems, to the point of being able to witness a tight race like we haven’t seen for some time, in which no one had to limit the pace to avoid degradation.
It’s not the Saudi track that says whether the tire management of a single-seater is ideal, but like every track it has its say on the performance front, and here the feedback has been negative. The only indirectly encouraging comment came from Charles Leclerc in describing a race strategy that saw him end his comeback once he got behind Carlos Sainz.
“I had a good start and a good first stint in which the management of the Soft tires was excellent – commented Charles – When I switched to the Hards in one lap I arrived less than a second from Carlos, but unfortunately I lost the DRS and from that moment it was no longer possible to take it back because I was losing too much downforce. My race ended there, but I think there was a lot more to the car today.” In the best scenario, Charles Leclerc could have fought for fifth position, which is what the team expected before the start.
In perspective, what emerged from Jeddah shows a problematic scenario. It is mainly to be understood whether the SF-23 concept is able to aspire to a second force role (this is the maximum objective of the 2023 Formula One season) or whether the critical issues that have emerged between Bahrain and Jeddah are such that they cannot be resolved with the development program.
Seeing the two Ferrari SF-23 cars finish the race behind the Mercedes makes you think, given Toto Wolff’s harsh words and his intention to review the project as a whole. Is there really a chance that the potential of SF-23 could somehow be unlocked? Or are more radical interventions needed? Fred Vasseur seems convinced that the single-seater itself can find more performance, between updates and improvements on the setup front. The French team principal sends a message of confidence, but today, in the light of the results of the first two races of the season, the uncertainties are starting to make their way.
