The good news for Scuderia Ferrari is that the technical updates on the SF-24 single-seater have worked. The disappointment from the outcome of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix weekend comes from the qualifying session, which did not meet expectations. The Italian side has reduced the gap to Red Bull to a tenth per lap, but unfortunately, McLaren squeezed into that minimal space. Charles Leclerc is bitter about the wasted opportunity in this seventh round of the 2024 Formula 1 championship.
Charles Leclerc’s face at the end of the Imola race said a lot. The Monegasque driver managed to put on a smile, but not much more, despite stepping onto the Imola podium for the first time and moving up to second place in the overall Formula 1 Drivers standings. Only the incredible chanting and support of the tenths of thousands of tifosi brought out one of his real smiles on the podium, but that’s another story. Charles Leclerc’s message contrasts a bit with the track’s verdict, which is a race finished seven seconds behind Max Verstappen. It seems that the Monegasque felt the Imola weekend was in fact a missed opportunity, starting with the crucial qualifying session, which did not go as it should have for the Maranello team.
The updates brought to the track at Imola by the Italian side have worked and everything was in line with expectations, but something else was missing, probably the hybrid strategy that affected the outcome of qualifying.
Both the drivers and the teams were certain: the race would be decided from the lights out to the first corner, and so it was, at least for the podium positions, especially given the fact that there was no Safety Car period that could have led to unexpected twists. Hence the regret for Ferrari that with a different qualifying, the final result of the weekend might have been different too. The good news, looking forward, is that Ferrari has come much closer to Red Bull, but even though the gap has reduced, it is clear that McLaren have also significantly improved and does in fact seem to be slightly faster than the SF-24 car, especially at key moments of the race.
Charles Leclerc emphasized that the race went well and that Ferrari had gotten even closer to their rivals. He believed that a better qualifying performance could have led to a more favorable result for the fans. The highlight of his race was during the stint with hard tires, where he had an excellent pace, allowing him to gain ground on Lando Norris and Max Verstappen. Overall, he noted many positives from the race, such as the upgrades working as expected and increased competitiveness.
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Team principal Frederic Vasseur pointed out that Charles Leclerc finished seven seconds behind the leader, averaging a tenth of a second per lap. He saw this as good news for both Ferrari and Formula 1, as it indicated close competition among three teams throughout the weekend. However, the French manager also expressed frustration, believing that if Ferrari had achieved a 1-2 finish in the Imola qualifying session on Saturday, they could have converted it into a double victory in the race on Sunday in front of their home crowd. He felt the main issue lay in the qualifying session, not the race itself.
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On the other hand, Carlos Sainz had a less notable weekend, finishing in fifth place, which reflected the gap he had compared to Charles Leclerc ever since Friday action and even in qualifying. He admitted to having a tough race and acknowledged the need to work with the Maranello team to understand why he wasn’t competitive in either qualifying or race pace. Despite the fact that Carlos Sainz didn’t go into specifics, he suggested that problems with both the power unit and the aerodynamic setup might have been factors. Frederic Vasseur echoed this sentiment, emphasizing the importance of every detail and recognizing that everyone faced challenges, underscoring the need to identify and address the issues as soon as possible.
Except for Lando Norris’s thrilling comeback against Max Verstappen at the end, it can’t be said that the Imola race was full of excitement. However, the impression is that the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix is the prelude to a highly interesting middle part of the season, with a potential three-way fight between Red Bull, McLaren, and Ferrari. The three cars have never been as close as they are after the latest updates, forcing the narrative of the races to shift from the machines to focusing increasingly on the human factor.
Imola presents a scenario similar to what was seen in Miami, with the teams from Maranello, Woking, and Milton Keynes competing for victory over the smallest details. Only 7 seconds separate Verstappen, Norris, and Leclerc, changing the perspective on race weekends. No more technical superiority of one design over another, but a condition of general balance where preparation and operations on track make the difference.
McLaren Team Principal Andrea Stella notes that the execution of the weekend is always a key factor, especially with such small gaps. In qualifying, the top three cars were within a tenth of a second. The way teams manage the tires and execute the race makes the difference. This was already learned in 2023, when Ferrari, Mercedes, and McLaren contended for the role of second force race by race, with the difference that Red Bull is now part of the fight, putting the first place up for grabs. The world champions’ victory at Imola stems from a masterful management of the weekend, with the team managing to overturn the setup at the last minute before qualifying, after the many driving difficulties experienced in practice.
The execution of qualifying will be another recurring factor this season. Imola is historically a difficult track for overtaking, but generally, the days of Verstappen’s comebacks from the back are gone, with the gaps getting smaller and smaller. Furthermore, the development is increasingly affecting the slipstream of the cars, with an aerodynamic disturbance once again prohibitive for those attempting an overtake, as well as harmful for tire management. At the moment, Ferrari is the car that needs to improve the most on a single lap, but besides the updates, it will be crucial to seize every single opportunity, like the slipstream Verstappen exploited in the decisive lap on Saturday.
The start is another of the many decisive factors at Imola. On the banks of the Santerno, Verstappen defended the precious first position at the start, confirming his infallibility in the standing start, which denotes an excellent mix of reaction times, tire preparation, and power unit thrust. From Variante del Tamburello onwards, the world champion thus benefits from clear air, showcasing a superior pace on medium tires with a full tank of fuel, a quality of the RB20 already appreciated in the early stages of other races.
After the switch to hard tires, Verstappen, Norris, and Leclerc travel at identical pace, with alternating flashes of superiority from the three protagonists. The triggering cause lies in the tire temperature, alternating between phases of overheating and recovery. Initially, Leclerc closes in on Norris, but once in dirty air, the Monegasque can’t make the move. Charles also finds it difficult to attack the McLaren on the straight, hypothesizing different power delivery strategies that add to the list of many decisive factors in this challenge.
Charles Leclerc’s run-off at Variante Gresini distances him from Norris, but after the attack attempt, the Monegasque has already overheated the SF-24’s tires, starting to struggle with pace. At the same time, the McLaren comes back to life, thanks to the Briton’s patience at the beginning of the stint in not stressing the tires. “They are using the tires more than we are,” his race engineer reassured him over the team radio under Ferrari’s pressure. The McLaren driver thus manages to catch up to Max Verstappen, but the comeback is completed one lap too late, when there’s no more time to attack.
With Verstappen and Norris fighting for the win, Charles Leclerc and Ferrari settle for third place. The disappointment felt by the fans indicates how the SF-24 is an increasingly convincing car, fueling growing hopes among the supporters of the Prancing Horse. The second consecutive third place behind Red Bull and McLaren contrasts with an absolute gap from the top now reduced to a minimum, as Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur pointed out that the team is developing to close the last hundredth.
Moreover, it is more than understandable that the Team Principal believes Ferrari would have won with a pole position, given the equivalent race pace with the rivals. It should also be noted that Imola is not the most favorable track for Ferrari, struggling to tackle the high curbs of the chicanes. The same updates also aim to improve high-speed corners, in the same area where McLaren lost some edge after the latest developments, gaining competitiveness in medium-low speed corners instead. Therefore, if Imola enhances the latest MCL38 updates, to appreciate the SF-24’s progress, one will have to wait for Barcelona.
Fred Vasseur still urges the team to accelerate the development pace, highlighting the need to improve the production speed of new components. In such a tight fight, even logistics will make a difference, as demonstrated by McLaren’s new wind tunnel, which speeds up development times. Imola promises a highly interesting season, potentially with many hard-fought races. It will be said that the Italian track is atypical and not indicative of the calendar, assuming there are any, but the point is precisely that the fight will take on a different face each time based on the track and especially on the performance of the three challengers.