Frederic Vasseur estimates that Ferrari was about two to three tenths behind the leaders at the Suzuka circuit. This estimate is particularly accurate for the single-lap pace, but during the race, there was no direct comparison with the McLaren MCL39 cars, who couldn’t run in clear air. On development, the Team Principal states that the priority is to address balance issues, in response to which Ferrari continues to explore different directions with the two drivers. In the background remain difficulties in managing low ride heights, alongside another issue highlighted by Lewis Hamilton.
Differentiated work between the two drivers
The positive news from the Japan trip is the progress Charles Leclerc has made in fine-tuning the SF-25, a result of his growing understanding of the package: “I am quite satisfied with Friday’s session. We made significant changes on my side to find a way to feel more comfortable with the car, because since the beginning of the year, I haven’t felt exactly how I wanted.” From Friday to Saturday, Ferrari improved primarily in the two final sectors, the only ones with medium and low-speed corners, while struggling in the sweeping curves of the opening section. The times suggest a different compromise between mechanical and aerodynamic performance, indicating a shift in balance toward the rear to improve stability and traction out of slow corners.
Lewis Hamilton is decidedly less satisfied, as he is taking a different approach to suspension setup, much like in China. Part of this choice stems from his different driving preferences and balance compared to his teammate, but also from the team’s desire to diversify the work programs for more data. “The balance and related issues are linked to their choices,” explained Fred Vasseur regarding Lewis Hamilton’s and Charles Leclerc’s different approaches. “We are still exploring a new car, and we are taking different directions to differentiate the drivers.” The picture shows Ferrari still in an exploratory and experimental phase, having only found some clarity in Japan with one of the two drivers.
The lost tenth
However, the seven-time Formula 1 world champion’s delay does not seem to be solely due to different setup choices. “We found something on the car that hasn’t been performing as it should in the last three races,” the Englishman said to Sky Sport F1. “I hope that once it’s fixed, I’ll start getting better results. I’m losing over a tenth per lap with this issue. I trust it will be resolved in the next races.”
Lewis Hamilton’s words are not entirely clear, not explaining whether he refers to a problem common to both cars, like the difficulty in managing low ride heights. However, the following clarification suggests it is something specific to his car: “The team is aware of it. They don’t know what caused it or why. When the new component arrives, I hope the issue will be gone, and the situation will be the same for both cars.” The available information doesn’t allow for anything more than speculation. The question remains whether there’s a faulty component, but it’s hard to imagine why it hasn’t been replaced yet, unless it’s a limited component of the power unit.
The underlying issue
The core difficulty for Ferrari remains managing the ride height. Work on the setup hasn’t fully solved the problems encountered at the start of the season, or at least not completely. “We are running higher than we’d like,” confirmed Lewis Hamilton in Japan. When asked about this, Fred Vasseur gave a broad answer, reiterating that with ground-effect Formula 1 cars, everyone tries to run as low as possible, with the common limit being floor wear.
The Team Principal’s words, however, do not erase the impression, fueled by events in the early races, that Ferrari faces more difficulties than expected in stabilizing the aerodynamic platform, forcing them to run the floor higher than the original design specifications. In this regard, the many compressions and sweeping corners of Suzuka represented the worst scenario for the Scuderia, amplifying the problem. This dynamic will continue to limit the project’s potential unless an effective setup is found that maintains the desired ride height without compromising balance. The alternative will be to change the development goals, creating a floor designed to work at ride heights manageable for the car.
Waiting for the updates
Meanwhile, work is underway on updates at Maranello. The first to hit the track will be those developed before the SF-25’s debut and as such, they will not address the issues that have arisen in the recent races. For this reason, experimenting with setups remains crucial to find a satisfactory balance, as emphasized by Fred Vasseur. The goal is to develop the understanding of the package necessary to identify its shortcomings, thus guiding the development agenda.
The starting base, however, offers good growth potential on paper thanks to the updates, as it has been deeply revamped since last year. “The hope is that the development pace will be faster compared to the end of last season,” commented technical director Loic Serra on the sidelines of the presentation. Development will also need to consider the increasing difficulties of overtaking, reassessing the performance compromise between qualifying and race. Since last year, the team’s approach has been to prioritize race pace over single-lap performance, both in the design and setup phases, but this now clashes with Fred Vasseur’s renewed understanding that “this will be a qualifying championship.”
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