It was a bitter experience for Scuderia Ferrari in the Chinese Grand Prix, as team principal Frédéric Vasseur does not hide the difficulties faced by the SF-24 single-seater. The issues in Shanghai should not be underestimated, but this is still the first race where the car seemed more troubled compared to its rivals. Whether it was a disastrous change to the setup between the Sprint Race and qualifying or simply the difficulty of adapting the Reds to the Chinese track (and its low temperatures), the focus now shifts to the Miami International Circuit.
The performance in Shanghai should not plunge Maranello into despair. Something went wrong, and there are many issues to be fixed, but no one expected an easy Grand Prix. Simulations had already shown some difficulties, perhaps exacerbated by the low temperatures. Scuderia Ferrari struggled a lot on hard tires, but there was also a lack of performance in qualifying.
Frédéric Vasseur had already commented on this. Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz need to start further ahead to be competitive. This truth applies to all five rounds of this World Championship so far, already particularly evident in Suzuka. But while the SF-24 performed quite well in Japan, almost regretting the qualifying performance, things did not go according to plan in Shanghai.
“Of course, it’s not ideal to start behind and lose positions at the start,” explained Frédéric Vasseur. “In the end, we were behind Sergio Perez and Lando Norris at the pit stop and finished behind them at the end of the race. If we lost something, it happened in the last stint. Carlos [Sainz] was concerned about having to do so many laps on hard tires, he was conservative at the beginning but then managed well.” – the French manager added.
According to the Ferrari team principal, the fourth and fifth places at the 5.451-kilometre Shanghai International Circuit were the best possible outcome, barring a better qualifying result: “If we missed something, it was because of the starting position. The medium tires were under control, and we were in a good position compared to others at the end of the stint. We lost ground with the hard tires.” – the Ferrari boss concluded.
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In Maranello, they must now work hard on the tires and procedures to bring them to the right operating temperature. Perhaps a lower-downforce setup in the Chinese Grand Prix proved to be disadvantageous in the race. The updates from Imola, which are expected to revolutionize the SF-24, are now more necessary than ever.
Source: f1ingenerale
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