Over two days, the Losail weekend did not spare surprises. The 57 laps scheduled for today’s race could be a long parade for McLaren on their way to winning the Constructors’ Championship (this is the most popular prediction), but there are still some question marks linked to two factors.
Teams adjusted their car setups after the sprint race, leading to significant performance changes confirmed in qualifying, and tire management for longer stints compared to the sprint race distance will need to be evaluated, with Ferrari being the only team to have tested the hard compound so far.
Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz will start from fifth and seventh positions, respectively, behind (as expected) the two McLarens but also George Russell and Max Verstappen. “We are much closer to McLaren than we expected,” commented Charles Leclerc, “but at the same time, we didn’t expect Mercedes and Red Bull to be this competitive.”
A challenging race awaits Ferrari, not only due to the competitiveness of their rivals but also because of the need to recover positions on the track, a task that proved difficult during the sprint race. However, there is room to hope for something more significant. Verstappen himself, after securing pole position yesterday (later turned into second place following a penalty), was notably surprised by the change in his Red Bull’s competitiveness after the setup modifications made after the sprint race.
“The qualifying result is not what we expected, even though we are just a tenth behind McLaren,” explained Frederic Vasseur, “but I believe everything is still possible. It will be crucial to maintain maximum focus on race management. Unlike the sprint race, tire degradation will be a more significant factor in the Grand Prix, and we can try to play a bit with strategy. Overtaking is decidedly difficult unless you manage to create a good pace delta with the right choices during the race.”
Frederic Vasseur hopes the race can offer new scenarios in terms of management, but to aspire for more than what has been seen so far, Ferrari will need to handle these scenarios better than their rivals. Simulations conducted by the teams after the sprint race have altered initial predictions, opening the possibility of covering the 57 laps with a single stop. Ferrari believed in this option from Friday, choosing to work with the hard compound in the free practice session and immediately showing confidence with this compound.
A change in race pace could occur, but for Ferrari to turn the weekend around, a significant step forward will be necessary. “We start with a couple of tenths’ gap (to McLaren) and need to aim to have at least the same margin in our favor,” emphasized Carlos Sainz, “so we need a big performance improvement because, as we saw in the sprint race, a significant advantage is required to overtake rivals, as overtaking is not easy on this track. In today’s race, strategies and pit stops will also come into play, and anything can always happen.”
Ferrari will have one last chance to delay the Constructors’ Championship assignment to Abu Dhabi, but after the sprint race, it has become clear that the road ahead is very uphill. “Given the situation, something special is needed,” confirmed Leclerc. “We can’t afford to only take the points available; we must aim for something more. The start and strategy, I believe, will be key moments. To overcome the two McLarens and keep our hopes alive, we must be ready to seize every opportunity.”
Leave a Reply