Looking at the standings, the first noticeable detail is the gap, over four-tenths from the top. An important figure, which the drivers had suggested might be the reality, with those missing three or four tenths that Ferrari has not been able to bridge with the latest updates, which also triggered bouncing in high-speed corners.
Frederic Vasseur acknowledged that the gap to McLaren is still significant but stressed how managing qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix was far from simple, especially with variable weather that forced the team to keep an eye on the radar and the sky.
“It wasn’t an easy session, but I think it was complex for everyone. Probably a bit less for McLaren, who did an excellent job and deserved the front row. We did the free practice with the track at 60°C and in qualifying, it was twenty degrees cooler, which wasn’t easy to manage. But McLaren did an excellent job,” explained the Ferrari Team Principal to Sky Sport, highlighting the drop in temperatures over the weekend. In fact, only FP1 was affected by such high temperatures, while from FP2 onwards, they began to drop.
Today recorded the coolest temperatures of the weekend, almost reaching 30°C, with a further drop compared to both FP2 and the morning’s FP3. This continuous temperature change was challenging for the teams to manage, but the final standings are still clear.
Similarly, the internal comparison saw Carlos Sainz prevail over his Maranello teammate, although Charles Leclerc had provisionally placed his SF-24 ahead in the first attempt. The Monegasque suffered from not having a second set of new tires available, used to pass the previous rounds, paying the price in the decisive moment.
Fred Vasseur explained that there isn’t a significant setup difference between the two, but at the same time, Charles Leclerc suffered from yesterday’s mistake in turn four when he crashed and lost most of the second session: “They are very close in terms of setup with both cars and I don’t think that made the difference. Certainly, the drivers’ styles require adjustments, but I believe Charles’s mistake yesterday pushed him to catch up from this morning.”
The error in FP2 forced him to miss the long-distance runs with more fuel onboard, and it is on this theme that Fred Vasseur focused, although he also highlighted that higher temperatures expected for tomorrow could play in Ferrari’s favor by perhaps creating more degradation. The Hungaroring is often harsh on rear tire wear, and the French manager believes this could be an area where the SF-24 can play its cards.
“I think the temperature should be higher and we will have to try to manage. It’s more of an opportunity for us because I believe higher degradation will give us the opportunity to overtake and recover. But we’ll see tomorrow, because yesterday with Charles we didn’t do the simulation and with Carlos we only did one stint. But from the beginning of the season, we have been good from that point of view.”
Finally, he also touched on the bouncing issue. Here in Budapest, Ferrari introduced a new package to address the bouncing encountered in the high-speed corners of the last three Grands Prix. Frederic Vasseur believes that the bouncing is now under control, which means Ferrari can focus on developments to increase aerodynamic load and close the gap to McLaren and Red Bull: “At least we have fixed most of the bouncing, making it easier for the drivers to manage the car and feel confident. We are in better condition compared to last weekend at Silverstone. Now we need to push more on development, also growing in terms of aerodynamic load.” – the Ferrari team principal concluded at the end of the qualifying session for the Hungarian Grand Prix in Budapest.
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